Small in stature but with a big heart, Ambrose “Cabbage” Hanna was the forerunner of the great Bahamian Triple Jumpers.
Born in Virginia Street in Nassau, Hanna volunteered for the Second World War. He was accepted into the First Bahamas Batallion of the Caribbean Regiment, training first in Jamaica and then in Virginia. They went to Naples and eventually settled in Egypt. While in Egypt Ambrose was coached by the chaplain of his regiment Canon Maxwell of Jamaica for inter regiment competition in Track & Field.
Cabbage became a champion is the sprints as well as the Hop, Step and Jump, now called the Triple Jump. Upon his return home Ambrose joined the Westerner’s Sporting Club and was the team captain during the Empire Day Sports meet in 1946. It was then that the Triple Jump was first introduced to The Bahamas by Hanna.
Eleven years later , in 1957, Hanna was selected to the Bahamas team at the West Indian Federation Games in Kingston. Five year later the Bahamas won it’s first medal in a field event, a Bronze in the Triple Jump by Prime Minister Perry “Gladstone” Christie.
Hanna’s son Steve participated in the Triple Jump at the World Championships and Olympic Games. He won several CAC Games and CAC Senior Championship titles in addition to two NCAA titles.
Ambrose “Cabbage” Hanna died on Sunday, September 28th at eighty-nine years of age. He will be certainly missed by the sporting and especially Track and Field community.
