WITH the aim of strengthening Guyana’s sports culture, the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport yesterday launched its Sports Management workshop at the Resource Centre in Georgetown. 

The event, which concludes tomorrow, will see participation of mostly sports administrators, coaches and teachers, being guided by Jamaican Olympic silver medallist Grace Jackson and Trinidad and Tobago’s Olympic silver and bronze medallist Ato Boldon.
Jackson, who competed at the Olympic Games in 1984 (USA), 1988 (South Korea) and 1992 (Spain), believes that a workshop of such nature is long overdue in Guyana since she’s also of the opinion that other Caribbean states have all advanced and adapted to the change in society.
“There has been a shift recently in the way others in the Caribbean have all been adapting to what’s happening outside and getting results, but to be honest, I didn’t see Guyana adapting to that shift,” Jackson said at yesterday’s opening ceremony.
She said that over the last two and a half months, along with Boldon, she has been researching on how best they can deliver three days of information that, upon completion, will be beneficial to sports development in Guyana.
Jackson told the gathering to brace themselves to be involved in intense discussions, sharing opinions and ideas while working together with a common goal of understanding their responsibility and obligation to the country’s main resource in sports; its athletes.
“Many times we do things in sports that do not have the athlete’s interest at heart. We tend to just want to participate overseas and not put in the proper work. We forget to invest in our athletes here, then send them off properly educated,” Anthony said.
Minister of Sport Dr Frank Anthony echoed the sentiments expressed by Jackson in relation to Guyana being left behind and added that his ministry is trying vigorously to promote sports education.
“When I look around and see what’s happening, I believe that sports has moved on and Guyana has been left behind,” opined the Sport Minister who added that “we lack a cultural identity in sports and I hope that the information received here can be trickled down our athletes.”
Anthony spoke of setting up an elite athletes programme in Guyana but said that “for us to do that, workshops like these must be done. So I want everyone to adapt to what is being taught here (at the workshop).”
Government has spent millions building the National Resource Centre but Anthony said that athletes are reluctant to make full use of the structure which was built to give student athletes a chance to educate themselves and to help in their various researches respective of their discipline.
Looking ahead, the minister said that he’s hoping to host many more workshops of similar nature since it forms part of the foundation for Guyana’s development in sports.
Several areas would be looked at during the workshop, including marketing and sustaining relevance in a country like Guyana where corporate support is often narrowed down to the major stakeholders.
Written By Rawle Toney