Sports
Roneil Walcott
With six years of international cricket experience to her name, and with accolades such as the 2024 First Citizens Sports Foundation Sportswoman of the Year and 2025 TT Cricket Board (TTCB) Female International Cricketer of the Year awards on her CV, West Indies women’s off-spinner Karishma Ramharack is no stranger to playing and performing at the highest level.
Since debuting for West Indies against Pakistan in Karachi in 2019, Ramharack has been a steady and reliable customer for the regional team, while she has also excelled for TT at the domestic level. The same passion and drive she shows on the field in maroon and TT red were evident on December 29 when she delivered the feature speech at the TT Olympic Committee (TTOC) awards at Queen’s Hall, Port of Spain – calling for women’s sports in TT and the wider region to be treated more seriously and not just as a hobby or part-time activity.
“As athletes, we know the average person may never fully understand what our bodies endure and how deeply this life affects us mentally and emotionally,” Ramharack said, outlining the sacrifices she and many others have made to forge a career for themselves. “But we chose this path and this is where I want to speak directly to the future – especially to parents, guardians and those shaping the next generation.
“Women’s sports is not a side story. It’s not a phase. It’s not something young girls should try before choosing something practical. What I see every day are women who are disciplined, strategic, resilient, and capable of excellence under pressure. These are qualities that translate far beyond the field,” she told the audience, delivering an off-spinner right into the rough.
On the field, Ramharack has represented the Windies in 90 matches across the One-Day International (ODI) and T20 formats, with her best ODI returns of four for 12 and four for 33 coming in early 2025 against Bangladesh in Basseterre, St Kitts. The picturesque Basseterre was also the destination for TT’s Red Force Divas when captain Ramharack and her team beat Barbados to the CG United Super50 title.
Ramharack said young girls need to be encouraged that sport could be viable means of earning a successful living.
“To the parents in the room, when your daughter shows interest in cricket, athletics, football, cycling, or any sport, don’t ask her how long it will last. Ask her how far she wants to go. Enrol and support her,” she said.
“Teach her that sport isn’t just an extracurricular activity, but it’s a space where character is built, and opportunities are created. Sport has taught me accountability, sacrifice, and how to manage failure and earn success. And yes, sport can be a viable career path, especially when you continue to invest, believe and make room for girls who dream seriously and train (purposefully).
“The next Olympian, medallist or the next leader in sport might be sitting in a classroom right now waiting for someone to take her seriously.”
She admitted life as a sportswoman isn’t a bed of roses, but said that a good support system inclusive of coaches, trainers, physiotherapists and psychologists go a long way in keeping an athlete on track – or on the cricket pitch in her case. Still, there must be the intrinsic desire for one to succeed.
Ramharack pointed to “the early mornings and getting my workouts in regardless of where I am in the world or what is happening around me. Cutting sugar completely out of my diet and sticking to it, even when cravings hit and even when everyone else around me was indulging.
“Choosing discipline over comfort, purpose over pleasure, every single day. That’s part of the journey we don’t celebrate enough. We talk about the medals and podiums, but we don’t always talk about the repetition and the mental strength it takes to wake up every day and do the right thing consistently, long before the results show.”
The spinner said it’s in the toughest times when athletes rise to the occasion and find the resolve to forge on, and urged the young athletes to stick to their tasks and their end goal.
“Stay in the game. Stay committed when it’s hard. Stay patient when the results feel far, and keep showing up when nobody is watching because that’s where greatness is built. You are here because of the work, belief, and because you refuse to quit. And today, TT is better because of you.”
With TT’s men’s and women’s teams claiming silver at the Bolivarian Games in Peru in early December, Ramharack and her colleagues are now eager to participate in more games under the TTOC banner as they push for spots at the LA 2028 Olympic Games.
