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by pltm
(PLTM) - Former national athlete and coach, Sanya Penn, has died.
Reports reaching BVI Platinum News revealed that the 33-year-old died on Sunday, May 22. Friends circulated recent photos of her being pregnant.
In an interview with BVI Platinum News, former president of the British Virgin Islands Athletic Association (BVIAA), Dean Greenaway fondly remembers Sanya as a naturally aggressive athlete from the start of her athletic career in primary school.
“Aggression is something that you can’t coach, but she had it,” Greenway noted.
Sanya competed in several disciplines including the 100m, 200m, and 400m sprints and well as the long jump. She has the 12th fastest national 100m time of 11.94 seconds and is ranked as number 6 in the long jump with a distance with a personal best of 5.89m.
She represented the BVI at the IAAF World Youth and World Junior Championships in 2005 and 2006, respectively. She also participated in in the CARIFTA Games, CAC Junior Championships, and the Leeward Islands Junior Championships
After her formal career as an athlete, Penn continued to contribute to the track and field fraternity by founding the East Patriots Track Club.
“I know she felt that particularly the kids from Willard Wheatley Primary School and the Francis Lettsome Primary School needed someone to help guide them, and that was one of the things she dedicated herself to. She worked with young people and tried to mould them to be better athletes and better persons,” Greenaway stated.
BVI Platinum extends condolences to the family and friends of Sanya Penn.
