AS THE Guyana Tennis Association (GTA) sets its itinerary for 2013, one of the items on the agenda is the hosting of an International Tennis Federation (ITF) Junior tournament at the Woolford Avenue-based Non Pariel Racquet Centre.

However, in order for that to become a reality, the facility located in North Georgetown would need to have a rubberised surface and, according to Director of Sport within the National Sports Commission Neil Kumar, they will see such in place very soon.
Kumar made this declaration, after holding a positive meeting with some executive members of the GTA, including its president Ramesh Seubarran, secretary Grace McAlmont and national coach Shelly Daly-Ramdyhan, who all welcomed the presence of former national Men’s champion Diwani Lewis back home from the USA.
Kumar also lauded Lewis on his achievements in the sport, while showering praise on the GTA for the hard work the officials have put in over the years, especially with their Beginners Programme.
“I am very happy to be here with Diwani, whom I have known for the last 30 years and what the GTA secretary said earlier is undoubtedly the truth, as he is a very disciplined player and one who focuses on his game.
In my discussion with both Seubarran and Lewis, I am happy to know that they are prepared to put systems in place so that our schools could have players coming and they too can be identified from a very young age, at first and second form so they could choose their career and come here and develop themselves,” stated Kumar.
He added, “I was very happy to hear Diwani expressing his delight at the way this venue has been developed and transformed and when I spoke to Seubarran earlier, he told me how comfortable the GTA would be, if a rubberised surface is in place at the venue, as it gives them the opportunity to host international tournaments.
“The last discussion I had with the Minister of Sport Dr Frank Anthony, he said we should make a genuine effort to put in place, a rubberised surface at this venue and I want to say that we are going to do just that.”
Kumar charged Lewis to inspire the young tennis players in the country, while expressing his satisfaction at the way the GTA conducted numerous programmes over the years, while urging them to continue to do so in a systematic way, encouraging accountability and transparency in everything, calling on everyone to work together, with the kids being the beneficiaries of the venue.
According to McAlmont, Lewis, who was the number on-ranked men’s juniors doubles and mixed doubles player here in Guyana between 1997 and 2000, earned a scholarship to Morgan State University in 2010, where he gained a Bachelor’s Degree in Science and Physcology.
He also spent five years working at the Bill Adams International Tennis Academy in Weston, Fla., where he provided instruction to juniors between the ages of 7 and 19, before moving to Coppin State University, where he now resides as the head tennis coach.
“Through the sport of tennis, Diwani was able to learn a scholarship to attend the Morgan State University through his academic career, along with a training grant to the Bill Adams Academy and now works as the head coach for the Coppin State University.
“I have always said that through sport, persons can have their upward mobility and Diwani is the perfect testament of that and through many years of discipline, hard work, dedication and focus, Diwani was able to come back home and show what tennis can do for you and I am very proud of him,” stated McAlmont.
The GTA secretary said she is very proud of Diwani’s achievement in the sport and hopes that it is a guide for all the other children in Guyana, who hope to take up tennis as a sport.
Lewis thanked both Kumar and the GTA for having him, while he promised to make maximum use of his office at CSU to ensure tennis players from this country get a chance to hone their skills further at that facility, through a scholarship.
“As Mr Kumar and Ms Mc Almont said, I am now the head tennis coach at CSU and being in such a position, will open doors for our junior players. When I was coming up, we had a structure but it was not as stable as you would want it to be and now I am in a position where I can provide to our local athletes.
“It’s a major step forward and in a conversation with the GTA’s president and secretary, I outlined to them guidelines the kids should follow here in terms of earning a place in college and university in Guyana and looking at what we have here today in comparison to what we started with, I think if we work together, we can make the future  brighter and prosperous in tennis,” added Lewis.
Seubarran assured Kumar that the GTA has made improvements in the administration of the sport in Guyana, citing transparency, accountability and good governance as the number one priority within the GTA, who at the same time strives to improve the standard of its players.
“I am very heartened to hear also, that plans are afoot to rubberise these courts. It is important and also a big step towards us hosting international tournaments and an ITF coordinator would be here in March, to ensure and make an assessment of the facility, which would enable the GTA to host a junior ITF tournament sometime this year, hence the rubberising of the courts would boost the sport in a big way.
Seubarran said the GTA will definitely be hosting the Inter-Guiana’s tennis championship next year, with French Guiana doing so this year, adding that four players have already been identified for the scholarship offer with CSU.
In a show of appreciation, the GTA later handed over a plaque to Lewis, citing it as a testament of his hard work and commitment shown towards the development of the sport in Guyana, with Kumar calling on him to visit more often to impart his knowledge to the younger players.