{"id":135606,"date":"2021-08-22T04:04:09","date_gmt":"2021-08-22T08:04:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?p=135606"},"modified":"2021-08-22T13:05:25","modified_gmt":"2021-08-22T17:05:25","slug":"absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/","title":{"rendered":"ABSF mourns the passing of Sir Lester Bird"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a><\/div>
\"\"<\/a><\/div>

The Antigua and Barbuda Swimming Federation (ABSF) would like to join local, national, and regional peoples throughout the Caribbean in expressing its deepest sympathy at the loss of National Hero Sir Lester Bird and our heartfelt condolences to his family and friends.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Sir Lester was an outlier for his time, acting as a groundbreaking visionary on national and international stages. ABSF President Dr. Derek Marshall acknowledged the pivotal impact this National Hero had on the country as a whole and young people in particular.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cSir Lester Bird was a crucial player in the formation and development of our twin island State as we know it today. A man of his mettle is rarely seen, and we are better as a country for his ability to establish a stronger footing for us as a Nation to stand upon.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>
\"\"<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cAs a National Federation, we continue to encourage young athletes from all avenues to look at his early experiences in Antiguan and Barbudan sports, and consider the positive impact it may have had, culminating in a star-studded career of public service and Nation building. His loss brings sadness, and is challenging in so many ways.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cIt is my sincere hope that as a community we can follow his lead, looking to the future with eyes primed for positive and engaging opportunities.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The ABSF Executive encourages everyone to support Sir Lester\u2019s family and friends in this difficult time. May his soul rest in eternal peace.\u201d<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Antigua and Barbuda Swimming Federation (ABSF) would like to join local, national, and regional peoples throughout the Caribbean in expressing its deepest sympathy at the loss of National Hero Sir Lester Bird and our heartfelt condolences to his family and friends.   Sir Lester was an outlier for his time, acting as a groundbreaking […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":128185,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-135606","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nABSF mourns the passing of Sir Lester Bird - Antigua News Room<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"ABSF mourns the passing of Sir Lester Bird\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Antigua and Barbuda Swimming Federation (ABSF) would like to join local, national, and regional peoples throughout the Caribbean in expressing its deepest sympathy at the loss of National Hero Sir Lester Bird and our heartfelt condolences to his family and friends.   Sir Lester was an outlier for his time, acting as a groundbreaking […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Antigua News Room\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-08-22T08:04:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-08-22T17:05:25+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Bird.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"802\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"386\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Editor\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@AntiguaNewsRoom\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@AntiguaNewsRoom\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Editor\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Editor\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/36cac05ef6398fe56ae3e6317f8535c5\"},\"headline\":\"ABSF mourns the passing of Sir Lester Bird\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-08-22T08:04:09+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-08-22T17:05:25+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/\"},\"wordCount\":256,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:802\/h:386\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Bird.jpeg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/\",\"name\":\"ABSF mourns the passing of Sir Lester Bird - Antigua News Room\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:802\/h:386\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Bird.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-08-22T08:04:09+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-08-22T17:05:25+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:802\/h:386\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Bird.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:802\/h:386\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Bird.jpeg\",\"width\":802,\"height\":386},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"ABSF mourns the passing of Sir Lester Bird\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/\",\"name\":\"Antigua News Room\",\"description\":\"News As It Happens\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Antigua Newsroom\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg\",\"width\":1260,\"height\":1260,\"caption\":\"Antigua Newsroom\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/AntiguaNewsRoom\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/antiguanewsroom\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/36cac05ef6398fe56ae3e6317f8535c5\",\"name\":\"Editor\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96\",\"caption\":\"Editor\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/author\/editor\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"ABSF mourns the passing of Sir Lester Bird - Antigua News Room","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"ABSF mourns the passing of Sir Lester Bird","og_description":"The Antigua and Barbuda Swimming Federation (ABSF) would like to join local, national, and regional peoples throughout the Caribbean in expressing its deepest sympathy at the loss of National Hero Sir Lester Bird and our heartfelt condolences to his family and friends.   Sir Lester was an outlier for his time, acting as a groundbreaking […]","og_url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/","og_site_name":"Antigua News Room","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom","article_published_time":"2021-08-22T08:04:09+00:00","article_modified_time":"2021-08-22T17:05:25+00:00","og_image":[{"width":802,"height":386,"url":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Bird.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Editor","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@AntiguaNewsRoom","twitter_site":"@AntiguaNewsRoom","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Editor","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/"},"author":{"name":"Editor","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/36cac05ef6398fe56ae3e6317f8535c5"},"headline":"ABSF mourns the passing of Sir Lester Bird","datePublished":"2021-08-22T08:04:09+00:00","dateModified":"2021-08-22T17:05:25+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/"},"wordCount":256,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:802\/h:386\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Bird.jpeg","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/","url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/","name":"ABSF mourns the passing of Sir Lester Bird - Antigua News Room","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:802\/h:386\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Bird.jpeg","datePublished":"2021-08-22T08:04:09+00:00","dateModified":"2021-08-22T17:05:25+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:802\/h:386\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Bird.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:802\/h:386\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Bird.jpeg","width":802,"height":386},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/absf-mourns-the-passing-of-sir-lester-b-bird\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"ABSF mourns the passing of Sir Lester Bird"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/","name":"Antigua News Room","description":"News As It Happens","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization","name":"Antigua Newsroom","url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg","width":1260,"height":1260,"caption":"Antigua Newsroom"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom","https:\/\/x.com\/AntiguaNewsRoom","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/antiguanewsroom\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/36cac05ef6398fe56ae3e6317f8535c5","name":"Editor","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96","caption":"Editor"},"url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/author\/editor\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135606","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=135606"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135606\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/media\/128185"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=135606"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=135606"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=135606"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}