ONE of the cries of many Guyanese under the previous administration was the lack of sports facilities across the country which they claimed had stifled the growth and development of the sector to a great extent.But while this remains one of the issues that are currently engaging the attention of Director of Sport, Christopher Jones, simultaneously, the underutilisation of some sports facilities, including the National Aquatic Centre at Liliendaal, remains of paramount importance to him.
In an interview yesterday with this publication, Jones expressed his vision for the growth of the sector which he noted is not an “overnight job”.
According to the Sports Director, plans are under way to pin Guyana’s sporting ability among those that are already internationally recognised.
As a result, he noted that since the new government’s assumption to office, those responsible for sports have pursued the option of working along with “in house” coaches to grasp a collective understanding of where the sports sector is, where it should be, and where they would like it to be.
At the same time, energies are being channelled towards the development of sports in communities across the country. Jones related that while it has been acknowledged that there is, in some areas, a lack of basic sports facilities, strategies are being drafted to combat this issue.
Currently, with the ‘August vacation’ slowly creeping up, he detailed that “summer programmes” for athletes and those wishing to become involved in sports are being examined. Aiding in this regard, he added, are the current facilities, which he has indicated will be made available to support these programmes.

“We are ready to make available, these facilities, once they are needed, to aid in these programmes to push sporting to another level in Guyana,” the director said.
But while there is a lack of facilities in some regard, the underutilisation of some existing facilities was recorded; particularly the pool at the National Aquatic Centre at Liliendaal, Jones added.
The “warm-up pool” which was commissioned earlier this year by the-then President, Donald Ramotar, marked the full completion of the National Aquatic Centre.
Following this, the Leonora Synthetic Track was also commissioned, and was described as “part of government’s investment in community grounds, fields and facilities to bring out the talents of persons regardless of where they live.”

By Ravin Singh