Dear Editor,
South American red-hot chilli pepper, Shakira, was born to sing and perform the World Cup Soccer official song Waka Waka as she did during the Johannesburg concert. The opening ceremony was at the level I expected, although I maintain that there is absolutely no one who will come close to the Chinese for the 2008 Beijing Olympics opening ceremony in the near future. So far, the World Cup is fun and excitement, and I honestly can’t wait to witness a head-butt like Zidane did during the last World Cup. Of course, it is unsportsmanlike, but it comes with the territory.
With reference to another sport, again I have to say well done to Jessica Stephenson who is overseas based and produced once again some impressive results at the TT National Long Course Championship. The same goes for the karate ambassadors who just returned with medals from another overseas meeting. I hope that maybe the officials of this fraternity might consider approaching the Guyana Olympic Association to discuss the possibility of a couple of karatekas joining the contingent of athletes selected for the 2012 London Olympic Games.
Another sport I am looking at keenly is rugby, which I believe is heading in the right direction. Guyana could very well be a force to be reckoned with in this sport. I am hoping to be available for the rugby tournament which is slated for the Providence Stadium in late July. Seeing that schools will be closed during that period, it’s the perfect holiday sports treat which can also generate interest with hopefuls who might have the potential to take up the game.
I believe that the business community in recent times has been making great efforts with its support, the most recent being the ‘Fitness Express,’ with its help to Calvin Belgrave, who will be representing the Golden Arrowhead along with others at the Hampton Games slated for T&T in a couple of weeks.
Track and field is at a juncture when everyone within that fraternity needs to pool their resources to build as a team. So, Gold Strides, AAG, GDF and Police need to sit once again around the discussion table and work out some plan of action to have Gold Strides Track and Field Games become a reality, after it was postponed on June 13.
A quick update is that Veronica Campbell Brown (Jamaica) ran 21.98 and edged my queen Allyson Felix (USA) who ran 22.02 for second place (200m) at the Adidas Grand Prix on June 12 in the US.
Yours faithfully,
T Pemberton