By KELSIE JOHNSON, NG Sports Reporter, kelsie@nasguard.com

For a very long time now, track and field has been one of the preferred sports for young Bahamian athletes, but although the sport has seen a major increase, not all events are reaping the benefits – especially on the field.

One such field event, the javelin, has left veteran thrower and women's national record holder for The Bahamas in the event, Laverne Eve, quite concerned about the future.

Eve, who will be participating in her final Olympic Games this summer, has been the sole competitor for The Bahamas for many years. She has represented The Bahamas at various Olympic, Pan American and Commonwealth Games, and much more regional and international competitions.

According to Eve, many junior athletes prefer the 'glamor' events over the field events. She continued on by saying, some athletes, especially females, are worried about having to 'bulk up'.

Eve said: "It is kind of disappointing because usually when I come out for trials it is only me and one other young lady, and I haven't seen her. What I have seen is nobody wants to throw, everybody just wants to run, everyone likes the glamor events and hopefully that will change when I am done competing. Maybe I can look around and try and do some scouting, try to find some younger talent and try and work with them at a younger age.

"No, you don't have to be muscular. I think people look at me and say oh you are a thrower, but I don't try to focus a lot on trying to build muscles. I focus on strength and speed. In the javelin, you have to be dynamic so the athlete varies and the body type varies."

Even though strong woman Eve is worried about the future of the country in the sport and wants to quickly address the problem, she has little time to do so. Eve has to turn her attention to the Beijing Olympic Games, which are scheduled for August 8-24.

In her first track meet, which was earlier this month in Coral Gables, Florida, Eve threw the javelin 55.55 meters (m). The distance was listed as one of the best throws in the world this year.

Referring to the meet as a last minute decision, Eve revealed she used the meet as a test, to see exactly where she was at and how her back would hold up. She stated that she was very surprised with the end results, especially after being on the runway only twice before.

"Right now my training has been going pretty good, I can't complain," said Eve. "My back had been bothering me for the past two months but now everything is fine so hopefully I can stay injury free from here on. My main problem is technical, that is one of the things I have been working on in the past... October or November. Hopefully, that comes through for me, but my strength, my speed, everything else is there. I just need my technique to be on point."

Eve's history in the sport dates back to the Carifta Track and Field Championships. She has a personal best throw of 63.73m and has made many final appearances at various international meets. Despite all of this, Eve is considering ending her career after the Olympic Games.

"I don't think I can go another four years," she said. "I am putting everything into this and my fingers are crossed with the confidence that I have, it will come out good for me," she said.