Two Fridays past, Naomi Osaka, the World’s Number Two ranked women’s lawn tennis player, and arguably the most popular athlete in Japan at the moment, lit the flame at the opening ceremony of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. As the athletes from around the globe participated in the March Past, dressed in their eye-catching uniforms reflecting their country’s respective traditions and outfits, such as the Bermudians in their famous Bermuda shorts, another flame was lit among Guyanese witnessing the spectacle on various media.
The source for the ensuing firestorm which developed almost instantaneously on social media platforms did not concern our meagre representation of only seven athletes, or the fact that they were outnumbered by nine officials at the quadrennial event, but rather, surprisingly, focused on the design of the uniforms worn by our representatives proudly strolling behind the Golden Arrowhead.
The rather sharp-looking Guyanese contingent was attired in predominantly brilliant red two piece outfits. The women and men both wore identically styled, red, long-sleeved tunics that had a wide black stripe extending the length of the top from the left shoulder, with GUYANA emblazoned on it, in bold white lettering. The right side of the top was adorned with three narrow bars of green (dark green which looks black in photographs), white and yellow, which were tastefully separated on the red background. The ladies wore red godet styled skirts with black box pleats, while the men were clad in black trousers.
The bone of contention among the heated debaters in the social media maelstrom was the visible lack of green on the uniform, which was instantly construed to have political connotations, since the colour green is associated with the previous APNU+AFC Coalition administration. In addition, the three bars of green, white and yellow on the red tunics bore a striking resemblance to the party colours of the incumbent PPP/C government. Perhaps, the debaters’ memories were spurred by the large banners comprising broad bars of red, yellow and black, which have adorned the façade of Freedom House over the years, often mistakenly leading European visitors to Georgetown to think it’s the German Consulate.
The intensity of the battle led to the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport posting a statement on its website to quell talk of implied political overtones sparked by the Olympic Games garb.
“For the sake of clarity, however, the Ministry was not and was never involved with the design of the uniform which includes the choice of colours. This is strictly the domain of the Guyana Olympic Association and I am advised that all of our national colours were represented,” Minister Charles Ramson declared in the statement.
In addition, the minister acknowledged that while he was very critical of the previous administration’s “attempt to brainwash Guyanese with their deliberate saturation of their green and yellow party colours,” our focus should rather be to celebrate our athletes who have made it onto the world stage.
A review of the uniforms at previous Olympic Games does not imply any such machinations. The contingents in 1996 and 2004 in Atlanta and Athens, respectively, wore yellow blazers, white shirts, green ties and green trousers. At the 2012 Games in London, our ladies wore yellow blazers with matching trousers and red shirts, whilst the men complemented them with the reverse; red blazers and trousers, with yellow shirts. At the last Games in Rio, Brazil, in 2016, our delegation wore tunics which bore a strong resemblance to that of English court jesters of yore. The left front was divided into two equal yellow and green panels, while the right side was entirely white, adorned with a miniature green map of Guyana. The rest of the top comprised a red back panel, black collar and yellow long sleeves with two narrow black and red bars on both wrists. Thankfully, the trousers and shoes were plain black.
If, for argument’s sake, this year’s uniform was indeed the direct intervention of the powers that be, Minister Ramson’s position on the totem pole of power likely does not allow for him to be made aware of such directives, which could have come from only one place. If indeed, this was the case, it has to be viewed as a masterful Machiavellian tactic of diversion; keeping the masses snarling and snapping at each other’s throats as the divide and conquer strategy gathers steam. Our population’s inclination to filter every major national event and decision for a race, and, or a political angle, then give it metallic properties, thus making it ductile for twisting and contorting into a two-headed monster, will only keep our heads buried in the sand, as we continue to miss the forest for the trees.
If there was no political intervention, and this was the work of the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA), the buck has to stop with the president, who is currently enjoying his sixth consecutive four-year term in office.
Perhaps, the social media Olympic debaters could have spent their time and energy directing their support to our seven participants or discussing the forest of reasons for our dismal lack of Olympic success. The time has arrived for the GOA to start answering tough questions. When will the GOA allow public scrutiny of the substantial funding received annually from the IOC and its subsequent allocation? Why aren’t we seeking the IOC’s assistance with developing more coaches? Why aren’t we leveraging our much sought after vote at the IOC Congress to negotiate further assistance with expanding local sport?
In an interview with this publication four years ago, our most successful athlete of recent times, Aliann Pompey, the 2002 Commonwealth Games 400 Metres Gold medallist, and four-time Olympian, stressed the need for long-term planning if we are serious about competing at the highest level. Pompey, who was appointed Head Coach of the Track and Field and Cross Country programme at St. John’s University two months ago, stressed the need to identify talent at a young age and to ensure that they are the beneficiaries of training and exposure
“In 2008 and prior, Canada had identified some of the athletes for their 2016 podium project. [Andre] De Grasse was on their radar since then. Eight years out, other countries are planning where to spend their resources, and four years out narrowing down the strategy,” Pompey observed, while adding, “Allowances are made for the athletes who step up beyond what was expected. Raising the level of expectation and support is key.” (De Grasse was back on the podium last Sunday, to receive the bronze medal for the Men’s 100 Metres, extending his streak of collecting a medal at consecutive major games to eight).
As other countries further enhance their sport programmes, we seem content to bask in the glory of the lone Olympic bronze medal won by our Bantamweight boxer Michael Parris at the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games and rail at each other over the design of uniforms.
