The Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) Saturday in a ground-breaking initiative met with stakeholders of the sports infrastructure in Guyana in an effort to have a more enabling environment.
Not all the sports associations/federations were represented but all who turned up clearly showed that they were as serious as the GOA in advancing the development of sports.
According to GOA President K.A Juman Yassin, the idea for the forum was born in Lima, Peru after discussions with the two media personnel there.
This led to saturday forum where the GOA top brass of Yassin, General Secretary Hector Edwards and Assistant Treasurer, Tricia Fiedtkou solicited the views of the media, the coaches and the sports administrators present.
To their credit, the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) was well represented by not only its acting General Secretary, Ian Alves, but also by Technical Director Ian Greenwood and new coach of the national men’s programme Marcio Maximo, who made a useful contribution.
Yassin, the first speaker began by informing the gathering of the role of the Olympic Association and the role of national associations/federations,.
“The Guyana Olympic Association is the parent body that is responsible for the competing in the major international games. We are in receipt of funding from the IOC and responsible for Olympic Solidarity Courses,” he said.
Yassin said that persons desirous of competing in any of the major games such as the Pan Am, Commonwealth or Olympic must come through the GOA.
Although it is the parent body for the various associations/federations that come under the Olympic umbrella, Yassin made it clear that the sports associations/federations are autonomous bodies free from outside interference.
“They are responsible for their respective sports,” he declared adding that participation in international competitions, team selection, the selection of coaches and such like are the responsibility of the national associations/federations.
“They are also responsible for the development of their sports.”
He dispelled the myth that officials sometimes outnumber the athletes at some if not all of the major games.
“That is not so to go to any games the athlete has to qualify,” said Yassin.
“The only sport where the athletes don’t have to qualify is swimming where if no athlete makes the required time, the swimming association is awarded two wild cards one for a male swimmer and the other for a female,” he said.
According to the GOA president, the number of officials for major international games is limited to the athletes that qualify.
“There is a guideline as to how many officials are allowed based on the number of athletes that qualify for a particular games, said the GOA boss.
Funding
Yassin also touched on the subject of funding where he disclosed that the GOA receives funding from the International Olympic Committee through Olympic Solidarity and through the Pan American Sports Organisation (PASO).
“That funding we utilize towards administration, towards payment of expenses, coaches and stipends for athletes,” he explained.
“At the moment for the year we have assisted boxing, US$14, 700 that is for the coach who was in Guyana; squash, US$16,030; boxing again, US$8,190 for Mr Allicock going to Cuba; table tennis, US$3,420 assisting Chelsea Edghill’s trip to Portugal; squash, payment of two coaches Mr Ince and Mr Nyron Joseph, which comes up to US$5, 210; rugby, US$1, 953 for three months training for the team which went to the Pan American Games; badminton was assisted; basketball is being assisted with coaches Junior Hercules and Mark Agard and that is around US$2,605 for four months; table tennis again for coaches; volleyball for coaches and judo for coaches and we’ve just approved the sum of US$750 per month for cycling, lawn tennis and archery.”
Tokyo Olympics
Yassin also disclosed that to date only athlete Aliyah Abrams has qualified for next year’s Tokyo Olympic Games adding that the GOA and the GBA are set to hammer out an agreement whereby four boxers and a coach will go to Cuba in preparation for the Olympic Qualifiers next year.
“We have also looked at sending, depending on the funding, four boxers and a coach to Cuba from mid- November to next year because the qualifying tournament for the Olympics for boxing, is in March in Argentina.
“The figures will have to be worked out with the boxing association and we want to be satisfied that all the expenses will be covered. We have decided that we will cover 15000 US dollars,” he said.
Pending appointments
“At the end of the day boxing, all the other sports have to work hand in hand with the private sector and other factors, “ said yassing adding….”We are looking at recommendations to appoint a Psychologist, a Sports Doctor and a Fitness Director.
Yassin said the GOA will meet with associations/federations to discuss the suitability of appointing a Fitness Director.
Elite athletes/coaches
Although he did not describe them as such Yassin disclosed that a number of top athletes have been receiving funding to assist them with their training for international competitions.
“Other funding that we have been doing through Olympic Solidarity for the following athletes, Troy Doris, Aliyah Abrams, the only person who has qualified for the Tokyo Olympics, Winston George, Brenessa Thompson, Kadecia Baird, Andrea Foster, Chelsea Edghill, Shemar Britton and Narayan Ramdhani.
“The following coaches are being paid a monthly stipend Johnny Gravesande, Linden Phillips, Julian Edmonds, Linden Pantlitz, Gokarn Ramdhani (out), Sebert Blake, Terrence Poole, Idi Lewis and Carl Ince.
“The following athletes are being paid a monthly stipend Joshua Mc Cammon, Ransford Goodluck, Keevin Allicock, Andrew Fowler, Andrew Seaton, Christopher Franklin, Lennox Braithwaite, Jermaine King, Nellisha Phillips, Dashanna Skeete, Chantoba Bright, Joanna Archer, Daniel Williams, Daniel Melville, Priyanna Ramdhani, Christopher Moore, Leslain Baird, Natalie Cummings, Trenace Lowe, Mary Fung-a-Fat and Nadia Mc Aulay.”
Yassin said while other athletes are also deserving of receiving a stipend, those were the names that the GOA decided on following recommendations from the respective associations/federations.
He said that come January, there will be a reassessment adding that some associations have already written the GOA requesting a particular person’s name be taken off the list. He did not elaborate.
Grassroots sports
Yassin also touched on grassroots sports and the support of the government.
“For the development of the sports in Guyana we need to develop from the grassroots and we’re hoping that with the payment of coaches that they will work in the grassroots.”
Yassin, a vice president of the Commonwealth Games Federation and an executive member of PASO, said that the GOA needs to work and cooperate with the government.
“It is a requirement of the IOC that there should be close cooperation with the government,” he said.
“I think we have a close cooperation with the government and Minister Norton, who was at the Pan Am Games,” he ended.
