A'Navia Mantock Declared Winner of Tourism Youth Congress Runoff

In a compelling display of oratory skill and tourism expertise, Miss A'Navia Mantock of the H. J. Robinson High School emerged victorious over Miss Trenea Wilson of the Marjorie Basden High School at the highly anticipated Tourism Youth Congress Runoff. The event took place on Tuesday, 24th February 2026, at Conference Rooms at Ports of Call, Providenciales.

L-R: Hon. Zhavargo Jolly, Miss A’Navia Mantock, Miss Trenea Wilson and Hon. Rachel Taylor

The two young tourism advocates went head-to-head in a rigorous two-round competition, demonstrating profound knowledge and innovative thinking regarding the future of the industry. The format challenged the participants to excel in both prepared and impromptu scenarios.

For the first round, the competitors delivered their prepared presentations on the critical topic of "Multigenerational Travel Product Development." Adhering to strict judging criteria, both students utilised mandatory audio-visual aids to enrich their 3-minute speeches, impressing the judges with their level of preparedness, relevant content and presentation skills.

The competition intensified during the second round with a high-pressure mystery question. Tasked with stepping into the role of a tourism investigator, the students were given three minutes to prepare and one minute to present their findings on the following scenario:

"Imagine you're a tourism detective investigating why visitor numbers have dropped in your destination. What's your top suspect and what's your plan to solve the case?”

Both students delivered compelling arguments; however, it was Miss Mantock who stood out to the judging panel. Following careful deliberation based on criteria including clarity, persuasiveness, and delivery, Miss Mantock was declared the winner of the runoff.

Minister for Tourism Hon. Zhavargo Jolly and Minister for Education Hon. Rachel Taylor

Commenting on the event, Minister of Tourism, Hon. Zhavargo Jolly stated:

"I am immensely proud of both A'Navia and Trenea for their exceptional performances. Their passion for our tourism industry and their innovative ideas for its future are truly inspiring. A'Navia has proven herself to be a formidable advocate for our islands, and I have every confidence that she will represent the Turks and Caicos Islands with distinction at the regional level. I wish her the very best as she prepares to take on the Caribbean at the CTO Youth Congress.”

As the winner, Miss Mantock will now go on to represent the Turks and Caicos Islands at the Caribbean Tourism Organisation's (CTO) Youth Congress, where she will compete against young tourism advocates from across the region.

The Ministry of Tourism extends its congratulations to both participants for their dedication and outstanding representation of their respective schools.