In 1971, Guyana’s George `The Chief’ Braithwaite (now deceased)
travelled as a representative of the United States table tennis team to Nagoya, Japan, for the Worlds Table tennis competition.
Following an encounter at the Worlds between Glenn Cowan of the US and Zhuang Zedong of China, the US team received an official invitation to visit China for a series of exhibition.
It was the start of what came to be known as Ping Pong Diplomacy.
Braithwaite was one of the nine table tennis players from the US to visit China.
Braithwaite at that time worked at the United Nations.
They were the first delegation to visit China in sometime ending a two-decade Cold War that had started at the end of World War II.
The US delegation held historic meetings with Premier Zhou Enlai and Chairman Mao Zedong.
There was also a cultural exchange between the visitors and their hosts and the US delegation visited a number of famous landmarks such as the Great Wall of China.
Henry Kissinger had laid the groundwork for President Richard Nixon to open relations, which has led to 50 years of friendship and prosperity for the two countries.
Braithwaite passed away last year on October 26 and efforts are being made to honor him sometime next month.
“We are proud to honour `The Chief’ by holding an outdoor gathering for the youth of the region, who will play at the George Braithwaite Courts, already named in his honor by the State of New York,” said Thomas Hu, Chief Executive Officer of the American Youth Table Tennis Organisation which will host the event.
According to Hu, representatives from around the globe, from countries such as China in Asia and Guyana in the Caribbean, as well as many other countries that had players and officials who claimed `The Chief’ as a friend is invited to attend the event which will be held at the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation, George Braithwaite table tennis court, Capobianco Field, Rooseveldt Island, New York City.
Three blue concrete tables have been commissioned in Braithwaite’s honour by the State of New York.
There will also be the announcement of the George Braithwaite Scholarship.
The tables were built by Alan Good of HENGE Tables and were among the first big orders by New York State for these locally manufactured tables. There are now 200 of them spread across America and 100 in New York.
“We expect HENGE tables CEO Alan Good to attend, and the highlight of the day will be a work called Dance to `The Chief’ performed by Alan Good, with commissioned music by Tristan Hu,” said Hu.
Hu said the event will be a fun commemoration of the life of George Braithwaite.
“May his spirit continue forward in the play of the youth at this event and in the many lessons he taught us all, especially, friendship first, competition second,” said Wu.
Two Guyanese are on the organising committee for the event Sydney Christophe and Mike TenPow.
Christophe is a former Caribbean men’s singles champion and national record holder for the most men’s national singles title while
TenPow is a former Permanent Representative of Guyana to the United Nations.
