Bouterse: Suriname to become sports heart of Caribbean

PARAMARIBO – Within two or three years, after an investment of some US$60 million, Suriname will have a hypermodern and ‘green’ sports facility which will serve as the Regional Sports Academy (RSA). “We will try to attract top teams and athletes such as Real Madrid and Usain Bolt to the facility. The most important thing is that the centre will benefit Surinamese athletes”, President Desi Bouterse told the press yesterday evening, shortly after his return from the 22^nd Inter-Sessional Meeting of the CARICOM’s Heads of Government, which was held last weekend in Grenada. At this conference, a detailed plan for the RSA was presented by Suriname’s delegation, which was headed by Bouterse. According to Bouterse, the plan was presented because Suriname has sports, culture, youth and gender in its CARICOM portfolio.  The RSA will be built around the Clarence Seedorf Sports Complex, because the RSA is a personal dream and design of the former soccer international. The project is also supported by such sports luminaries as Boris Becker, Letitia Vriesde and Richard Krajicek. Seedorf will come to Suriname in June to discuss the plans for the RSA.