FEBRUARY 2011 was the month in which former National and Caribbean table tennis champion Sydney Christophe held an International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Level I coaching course for coaches of the sport in Guyana. Coaches who attended the course, including Linden Johnson and Melissa Dow-Richardson, would have completed a mandatory 30 hours of theoretical and practical training, with six hours supervised, while being asked to proficiently demonstrate the ability to execute and implement the elements/topics dealt with before being certified.
From the course, Dow-Richardson ventured into the South Georgetown district, into a village called Rasville and formed the Rasville Table Tennis Club (RTTC), a spin-off from the Rasville Youth Organisation (RYO), on April 29 2011, thanks to the Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA) who donated the table.
Today, the RTTC celebrates its first anniversary and what better way to do so than by hosting an in-house table tennis championship in seven categories, from Under-13 to ‘A’ Class, inclusive of a Beginners category as well.
“When I started the RTTC, with the lone table we received from the GTTA, my aim was to produce a national champion within the first year. Fortunately for me, I was able to do so within eight months, when nine 9-year-old Tyriq Saunders defied the odds to place second to Jeremy Singh at the last GTTA national championships.
Not pleased with that performance, Saunders went one rung better when he defeated Singh one week later in a special championship that was arranged by president of the GTTA, much to the pleasure of his club-mates, mom, sister and myself as I knew he had it within him.”
The 34-year-old Dow-Richardson, who was a force to be reckoned with during her playing days, has over 50-odd members in the club, whose goal is to use SPORTS, EDUCATION and the ENVIRONMENT (S.E.E.) as additional advancement tools towards building stronger communities and societies at the National, Regional and International level.
Such a goal was achieved in February of this year, when Saunders played unbeaten in the annual GTTA Mashramani tournament which also gives him a spot on the Junior Cadets team to represent Guyana at the Pre-Cadets Championships in Jamaica later this year.
For today’s championship trophies, which will be awarded to the top three finishers of each category, were sponsored by West Indian Sports Complex, Trophy Stall (Bourda Market and City Mall), Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club and Director of Sport within the National Sports Commission, Neil Kumar.
Early last month, national player Idi Lewis, who landed a Joola contract for the Malteenoes Sports Club’s table tennis team, donated 100 Joola balls and two racquets to the RTTC – a gesture that pleased Dow-Richardson.
“When Lewis paid us a visit that night, no one, not even I had any idea what he intended to do. Next thing I know he asked about balls and how we make out and after hearing that the members, who are so committed to learning, buy balls, he surprised us with the donation,” said Dow-Richardson.
She added that Lewis will be making another presentation during today’s anniversary championships, this time in the form of uniforms to the club which also has as one of its members, female national 10-and-under champion Salinas Jackman, who will also be in action today, competing against the opposite sex in the Under-13 and ‘A’ Class categories.
Two other players, the vast-improving Denzil Jones and Edward ‘Bo’ Favorite will also be in action today, while Godfrey Munroe, Christopher Franklyn, Edinho Lewis and Idi Lewis, all national players in their own rights, will be participating in two exhibition matches during the course of the day.
Today’s action serves off at 10:00hrs, while drinks and refreshments will be on sale and the media is cordially invited to supply the necessary coverage.