CB/UWI 5K honours Francis

Jamaica's netball great Connie Francis is this year's special honouree of the CB/UWI 5K Fundraising Run, continuing an established tradition for the event inaugurated in 2012.

Chairperson of the event, Elizabeth Buchanan-Hind, said it was the university's distinct pleasure to honour Francis.

"We are delighted to recognise the great Connie Francis and acknowledge her years of consistent excellence as a player and coach. Through her dedication, Jamaica's deserved reputation as a global power in netball, and the sporting arena generally, shall continue," Buchanan-Hind said.

Francis has been a pre-eminent figure in Jamaican netball for over four decades, coming to prominence as part of the all-conquering Waulgrovians. She has a similarly stellar record as a national representative and is one of only three Sunshine Girls to have worn the national colours at five Netball World Cups.

Francis transitioned to coaching and also enjoyed podium success, guiding the Sunshine Girls to bronze medal finishes at two Netball World Cups in 2007 and earlier this year.

The honour places the netball icon in the company of other stalwarts in the sporting arena, including fellow netball great Molly Rhone; administrator Mike Fennell; Alfred 'Frano' Francis, managing director, Running Events Limited; sprint coach Glen Mills; and track and field greats Asafa Powell, Shericka Jackson, Omar McLeod and Hansle Parchment.

This year's CB/UWI 5K Run takes place on November 19 at the UWI Mona campus, beginning at 6 am. Last year's event attracted approximately 5,000 participants.

Contribution to enter the event is $1,500 for adults and $700 for students/children. The adult group rate is $1,200 for each individual.