Three weeks after the commissioning of the National Aquatic Centre, officials are pointing to administrative problems and the lack of an effective structure for the use of the Olympic-size pool at Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara.
A Guyana Amateur Swimming Association (GASA) official, who asked to remain anonymous, said that the current administrator works up to 16:00 hours and when the swimmers get there at 17:00 hours the admin building is locked. Additionally, the swimmers have no access to the toilet facilities and it becomes extremely frustrating, according to the official.
The official pointed out that it appears there is no proper structure in place to determine who will use the pool and when and guidelines for the use of the pool. Apart from that, the official indicated that the facility’s management does not have a clue about what is required to maintain a facility of this magnitude.
Water polo clinic
The official stated that the GASA is trying to institute a structure of their own since they are allowed to use the facility but at some point the ministry will have to institute better measures, especially since next month a Cuban coach will be in Guyana to conduct a water polo training clinic.
The official stated that the swimmers have been working their hardest despite these teething problems.
The official said that they had to resort to the use of the 50m pool because the Castellani pool on Homestretch Avenue is closed.
This point was made while noting that the swimmers who are preparing for the Goodwill Games next year are way behind schedule.
And while the official stated that Director of Sport Neil Kumar has been helpful it seems as if Guyana would not be able to field a full strength team of 36 swimmers for the meet. This is due to the fact that the swimmers have lost time for training due to the closure of Colgrain Pool for close to a year, the closure of Castellani and now the uncertain arrangement for the use of Guyana’s first Olympic-size swimming pool.
Further, the official said that with the loss of pool time at Colgrain, the GASA and some of the clubs lost most of their talented swimmers, adding that when that facility was up and running there were 30 swimmers in the intermediate programme. There are only two swimmers now, according to the official.
The official indicated that the clubs are now trying to rebuild, but with key infrastructure missing this will take a longer time and therefore more personnel will have to be employed at the Liliendaal facility. And the official reiterated that the system has to be improved.
The Guyana Amateur Swimming Association (GASA) has already submitted its proposals for the use of the Liliendaal 50m Olympic-size swimming pool to the Sport Ministry and the two bodies were to have discussions after the commissioning.
Earlier last year stakeholders had said that usage time allotted for the pool was one of the main concerns that would need to be tackled. Over the years the association has had some reservations about the time assigned for use of the available pools – Colgrain and Castellani.
The 25-yard Colgrain pool is the one most utilized for beginners and intermediate swimmers, while the more advanced swimmers use the 25m Castellani pool but they were only allowed limited use of that facility.
Vice-President (Technical) of GASA, John Perreira, had said prior to the commissioning of the National Aquatic Centre that usage time for the pool will be one of the most critical factors in ensuring that the facility is utilized for the development of swimmers.
He was quoted as saying then, “I don’t see it [the Olympic-size pool] having any major impact until they have worked out a schedule on the usage of the pool. Unless we have adequate access to the facility we can’t develop swimming.”
Meanwhile, when asked how the swimmers were adapting to the 50m pool the official said that the more experienced swimmers like Niall Roberts and Brittany Van Lange are finding it easier while the less seasoned ones have had some difficulty. However, the official said that this will change with time and with more usage.
