The Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GTT) continues to make an impact in sports sponsorship after partnering with the Guyana Floodlight Softball Cricket Association (GFCA) for the fourth edition of the Guyana Softball Cup.
The company made a significant contribution of $500,000 to the GFSCA at its canteen on Tuesday for the tournament which bowls off on Friday at various venues across the capital city.
At the presentation, GT&T Marketing Officer, Nicola Duggan, stated that the company was proud to be part of the development of softball cricket in Guyana. GT&T has collaborated with the GFSCA over the past two years and Duggan said the company was elated to continue the trend.
“We at GT&T for the past two years had an outstanding relationship with the GFSCA and we are pleased to continue that affiliation,” said Duggan, who also urged Guyanese to support the event.
President of the GFSCA, Ramchand Ragbeer expressed gratitude to the telecommunications entity for its continuous support since sponsorship was necessary for the success of the tournament.
According to other organizing committee members, preparations are ongoing and some teams arrived yesterday while the others will land today.
A meeting for all the teams will be held today from 17:00 hours at the Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC) pavilion while tomorrow teams are asked to assemble at the said venue by 08:00 hours for the formal opening.
Some 39 preliminary games will be played between Friday and Saturday morning before the four semi-finals in the afternoon. The two finals are set for Sunday with the open final to be played under lights at the Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) ground. Admission to the various venues tomorrow and Saturday is free, while patrons will pay $500 on Sunday.
There will be two competing categories – one for teams contesting the Men’s Open and the other for the Masters players, aged 45 and over.
The champion team in the Men’s Open is guaranteed a whopping $800,000 first prize and a huge trophy, while the losing finalist will have to settle for $200,000 and a trophy. Meanwhile, in the Masters’ division, the winning team will pocket $600,000 with the runner-up assured of $150,000. The Man-of-the-Match in both finals will receive trophies.
Two 14-karat gold bracelets, accentuated with diamond studs, have been put up as the prizes for the Most Valuable Players (MVPs) of the Open and Masters categories, compliments of Steve’s Jewellery.
On the day of the final, there will be lots of hampers and giveaways for spectators. Additionally, two spectators can win return tickets from Survival Travel Agency to the beautiful island of Aruba.
All the spectators need to do is retain their half tickets and listen for their numbers to be called over the Public Address system during the final.
Two dozen teams will compete in this year’s event, with 12 from Guyana, seven from New York, three from Florida and two from Canada. During the three-day championship, there will be a total of 36 preliminary games, followed by four semi-finals and two finals.
Trophy Stall and New York Better are the defending champions of the Open and Masters categories respectively, while the previous champions were NYSCL New York (Open) and Savage Masters in 2012 and Cotton Field Wild Oats (Open) and Regal Seniors (Masters) in 2011.
According to information emanating from the GFSCA, this year’s tournament has an estimated budget of around $10 million.
