Inez Turner reacts to the passing of Coach Consie Haughton

“Coach Consie was like a father to me. He was kind, he was smart and he is the reason why I am coaching today,” said Inez Turner, the head track and field coach at Winston-Salem State University in North Carolina, USA.  Turner, a former standout at Vere Technical High School (Vere Tech) was reacting to the passing of her former high school coach, Constantine “Consie” Haughton who lost his battle to cancer last Friday morning (May 10).   Consie was a coach and teacher at Vere Tech for over 25 years and he was instrumental in the development of many Jamaican mid-distance runners including Inez Turner and her two sisters (Denise and Yvette). Appearing as a guest on the “Sports Zone with Professor Show” last night,   Coach Turner said that she heard the news of Coach Consie passing while she was on a recruiting trip in North Carolina and that she was shocked and is still saddened by it. “He was a good man who was very strict but very compassionate” said Coach Turner.  Coach Turner said that one of her fondest memories of Coach Consie was as a student at Vere Tech, she and her sisters could not afford lunch because things were very difficult for them.  “Coach Consie would take his own lunch and split it among me and my sisters so that we would have something in our tummies when we go to practice later in the afternoon,” she reflected. Coach Turner said that the acts of kindness shown by Coach Consie had inspired her and has help to shape her into the kind of person she is today.  Coach Turner is particularly appreciative of Coach Consie’s family whom she said has reached out to his former athletes worldwide to give them ample time to attend the funeral.  The funeral service is scheduled for June 9 and Coach Turner plans on being there to pay her respects to a great man and  a great coach who had a tremendous impact on her life. Note: Inez Turner is a Jamaican Olympian who specialized in the 800m. She was the 1994 Commonwealth Games 800m champion and was a two-time NCAA 800m champion at Southwest Texas University.  She is credited with being the first women from the English-Speaking Caribbean to run sub-2 minutes in the 800m. You can listen to the entire interview in the Radio Program section on the www.trackledger.com  homepage .