We take a look back at some of the most newsworthy events of 2016. Last year was certainly a year of drama in several aspects, not least in America with their Presidential Election. Here is our snapshot of 2016 highlights.
Key Happenings
2016 US Election
In one of the biggest shocks of the decade let alone 2016, Donald trump was elected president of the United States. Despite becoming the 45th president of the USA, Trump lost the popular vote among Americas by nearly 3 million votes, yet managed to gain enough electoral votes to claim the victory. The victory was shocking for several reasons, not least the fact that he won states who were pro-Democrat and also the fact that he trailed behind Clinton in most of the polls throughout the campaign. Despite the shocking result, however, this presidential campaign will also be remembered for having the first female presidential nominee of a major party.
Brexit –i.e British Exit.
Britain had their own political shock in 2016. In one of the most stunning modern developments, 52% residents of the UK and Northern Ireland voted to leave the European Union on June 23rd. The outcome of the referendum saw British Prime Minister David Cameron resign.
Tim Peake successfully completed his ISS mission and came back from space
After 186 days (6 months) n space, British astronaut Tim Peake returned to earth. His mission (called Principia after Isaac Newton’s seminal work) included conducting many scientific experiments such as testing nitric oxide gas as a possible tool to monitor lung inflammation. His journey was definitely one of the memorable moments of the year.
Price Harry visits the Caribbean
In his visit to the Caribbean, Price Harry attended Barbados’ 50th anniversary of independence concert, while he and Rihanna engaged in public HIV testing on World Aids day in an effort to promote widespread testing in Barbados. He also visited Guyana on the final leg of his Caribbean visit, where he was presented with a headdress by dancers in Surama Village in the Guyana Hinterland.
Sports
West Indies do a Historic Treble
Despite 2016 being the typical year of highs and lows for West Indies cricket, it certainly had some of its greatest highs in the modern era. The men, the girls and the boys in maroon and gold achieved a historic feat by winning the ICC U19 World Cup, The Women’s T20 World Cup and the Men’s T20 World Cup all in the same calendar year. Of the three victories, the men’s victory will always be the most memorable, as Carlos Brathwaite hit four consecutive sixes to seal the treble.
Chicago Cubs win the World Series
In their first world series appears since 1945, the Cubs won their first World Series title since 1908, in the process lifting the curse of the Billy Goat. According to Andrew Pestano of United Press International, “the curse stems from a story about Billy Goat Tavern owner William Sianis, who allegedly cursed the team to decades of losing after he was kicked out of Wrigley Field because his pet goat Murphy was a nuisance to fans”. Safe to say, that curse has now been broken.
The Rio Olympics 2016
From the many record breaking wins for women and minorities (Simone Biles (4 golds and one bronze, including gold in the all-round finals), Wayde Van Niekerk (broke Michael Johnson’s unbelievable and seemingly untouchable world record in the 400m), Simone Manuel (first black woman to win an individual gold medal in swimming)), to amazing acts of sportsmanship (Abbey D’ Agostino of the USA and Nikki Hamblin of New Zealand helped each other to the finish line after colliding in the 5000m), the Rio Olympic games was one of the most memorable Olympic games in recent memory.
Caribbean Highlights from Athletics
Aside from the monumental achievements at Rio, it was one of greatness for Caribbean athletes such as Usain Bolt (claiming a historic “Triple Triple”), Elaine Thompson (100m and 200m double – the first by a female athlete in 28 years) and Shaunae Miller (gold in that race with Allyson Felix). Despite all the tumbles and controversies, the Caribbean ended with 28 medals in Athletics at the Olympics. And let us not forget Akeem Stewart of Trinidad and Tobago at the Paralympic Games, breaking the world record twice to seal gold in the javelin.
Entertainment
- Stephanie Del Valle of Puerto Rico was crowned Miss World 2016 while Yaritza Miguelina Reyes Ramírez, 23, of the Dominican Republic, was named the runner-up.
- Caribbean-born superstars Rihanna and Nicki Minaj were among the winners at the BET Awards In June. Rihanna has also been nominated for 8 Grammy Awards.
- Guyanese-roots Actress Kylie Bunbury, starred as lead actress on Fox’s TV show Pitch, about a talented baseball pitcher who becomes the first woman to play in the major leagues.
Those We Lost
2016 was also a year of many deaths of famous persons. Those most famous deaths included the Iconic musician David Bowie, Alan Rickman aka Harry Potter’s Severus Snape, music legend Prince, singer George Michael and actor Alan Thicke. In addition to this, former Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister was also one of the fatalities of 2016 after an arduous battle with cancer. One of the most notable deaths however was that of Fidel Castro. After having strained relations with the USA for many years, Cuba’s relationship with the USA drastically improved between 2014 and 2016 following Obama’s announcement that it was time for a new approach. Unfortunately, Fidel Castro the iconic leader of Cuba, only lived to see two years of these improved relations, as he died in late November.
These were just a snippet of some of the highs and lows of 2016: A year of victories, tears, laughter, shocks and political changes. What will 2017 bring?
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