Bartica businessman Stephen Bell yesterday blasted the Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA) over the selection of Under-21 player Denzel Hopkinson ahead off his twin sons Brad and Brandon.
The GTTA on Monday issued a press release naming the players on the men and women’s teams and also naming the veteran and U-21 players to participate at the 54th annual Caribbean TT championships in Santo Domingo later this month.
National champion Nigel Bryan was named by the GTTA to compete in the U-21 boys singles with Hopkinson, son of GTTA vice-president Harold Hopkinson as the stand by player.
However, the elder Bell is claiming that both of his sons have superior records than Hopkinson.
“Brad is the top junior player in New York right now and he won the New York State Mayor’s Cup for the third year in succession, sometime in June.”
Stephen Bell said at last year’s National TT Championships, Brad and Brandon reached the finals of the `B’ Class category. In the U-21 category which was won by Bryan, Brad placed second and Brandon third.
They also participated in the GTTA’s Top16 tournament held earlier this year where Brad lost to Colin France and Brandon lost in the quarter-finals.
“I brought them in for the weekend to compete in the Top 16 and I think Brad was beaten by Colin France and Brandon was beaten in the quarter-finals. Denzel Hopkinson was knocked out in first round of the Top 16.”
Stephen Bell said that at last year’s Caribbean championships held in Guyana, Brad placed third behind a Santo Domingo player and a Jamaica.
He said he has sought but has been unable to get any satisfactory explanation from the GTTA concerning the selection of Hopkinson as the stand by U-21 player ahead of his sons.
“My question is how come they named Mr. Hopkinson’s son on the team as the stand by player?
He said he contacted chairman of the GTTA Selection Committee Dr. Pradeep Balram who said he did not issue the release on the team.
“When I spoke to Dr Balram he said he never gave any information with any team to be given out and he does not know how it got to the media,” said Stephen Bell adding that Dr. Balram indicated that the team that was published was indeed accurate.
“He said the information is supposed to be accurate because Nigel (Bryan) is the top player in the U21 and there is only one slot available.”
Stephen Bell said the entire affair reeks of nepotism and favoritism.
“Well I think it is favouritism. The excuse he gave to me was if I looked at the tournaments played this year, the Mashramani, the Independence…..But I said my sons don’t even live here. They go to school in the US. I can’t bring them for every tournament the GTTA holds. I bring them for the main tournaments including the Nationals. I can’t bring them for every single tournament they have in this country. If you are going to base your selection on that, how come Paul David wasn’t here last year for the Nationals and has been selected for the championships to play on the Guyana squad?. He could not answer me. They say there are going with a young team yet still they are carrying Paul David.”
Bell said he was considering removing his children from the sport in Guyana and allowing them to play for the US.
“My thing is this simple. If the Guyana committee here is going to base their selection on friendship and not performance I won’t bring my children here at all. My children are going to be US citizens from next year. I will let my children represent the US and don’t have anything to do with Guyana anymore. Every year is the same thing.
“Year before the last, both my sons beat Nigel Bryan and I had to row for them to be selected last year. I had to remind the committee of this before they were selected to represent Guyana”.
Bell, who said his children are already in Guyana preparing for the National Junior Championships which is expected to commence on August 17, said he thought the GTTA would have used the National Championships as a yardstick for selecting the U-21 player.
“It was when I read the papers that was when I knew of the selection of the team. All the time I waiting for Nationals because I brought the kids down here to participate in the Nationals.”
Bell said his sons were taking the omission very hard.
“They are saying their father is soft and is not representing them. They are bitterly disappointed but when I raise the issue I am getting nowhere. These people are already bent on what they are doing.
“I tried to call Mr. Greene (Henry) but I was unable to get to him and it leave at that. As it is now, my sons are supposed to go to Jamaica. There is a tournament in Jamaica sometime in September for the top players in the Caribbean.
“They are supposed to be going for that tournament. I’m sponsoring them. It has nothing to do with Guyana. It is an Open tournament anybody can go. The winner of the tournament will receive US$65000,” Stephen Bell said.
