The Godmother of Barbados’ hockey Andrea Nichols passed away yesterday at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
Nichols, 70, a former longstanding national women’s hockey goalkeeper and captain during a career which spanned from 1973 to 1989, only this year received the prestigious Esther Maynard Award during the Barbados Olympic Association’s (BOA) Awards ceremony.
She spearheaded the bronzemedal winning team at the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games in 1990 in Mexico and also had the honour of making the West Indies team that participated in the Diamond Jubilee Cup in Scotland in 1980.
In 1992, she earned the distinction of being Barbados’ first female International Hockey Federation (FIH) umpire after reaching the qualifying standard at the 1991 Pan Am Games in Cuba. Before that, she also represented Barbados at the Pan Am Games in 1983 and 1987.
A stalwart of the famous Empire Club in Bank Hall, Nichols also started working at her Alma Mater Springer Memorial School in 1972 and subsequently became head of the Physical Education Department, continuing the institution’s sporting success during her 28year stint there, before becoming an education officer.
Nichols, who had two sons, Adrian Nichols and Laurando Davis, who also reprseented Barbados in hockey, spent most of
her formative years in Birmingham, England, attending the Springfield Primary and Moseley Modern schools.
She started her career for Barbados as a 20-year-old forward, scoring a goal on debut against Guyana in 1974.
One of the first persons to pay tribute to Nichols, was another Empire and Barbados stalwart, Sharon Howell.
“Andrea worked tirelessly at Empire Club, specifically, coaching and developing our hockey skills but also at her Alma Mater, Springer Memorial School and the wider community. She as always willing to teach hockey to anyone who showed an interest. We have lost one who sacrificed much for hockey in Barbados and whose legacy will live on.
“Quintessentially, a coach and mentor, whose skills and talents will continue to be missed at Empire,” said Howell.
(EZS)
