A NUMBER of the overseas athletes who touched down on Guyana shores last year for the Aliann Pompey (AP) Invitational are set to make another appearance this year, when the meet returns to the National Track and Field Centre on July 15.
Organiser of the event, Guyanese Commonwealth Games gold medallist Aliann Pompey announced that athletes Eddie Lovett (USVI), Kenike Alexander (St Vincent), Brycen Spratlin (USA) and Ashley Kelly (BVI) have all confirmed that they will be returning to the meet this year.
“One hundred percent of the athletes who competed last year want to come back this year, except the two who have since retired. A lot of that was due to the amazing atmosphere the spectators created. The crowd was great and I hope even more people will come out to support the event this year.” Pompey commented.
The overseas athletes are in addition to the impressive line-up of Guyanese who will be participating, including national record holder, and last year’s Fly Jamaica women’s 100m champion Brenessa Thompson, 400m women’s champion Kadecia Baird, and GOA men’s 400m runner-up Winston George, who had lost the 400m to Spratlin.
But this year both George and Spratlin will have to brace themselves for competition from newcomers Stephan James and Jermaine Griffith, both overseas-based Guyanese. Both are currently experiencing outstanding seasons, each having broken the 400m indoor national record this year – James while attending Mississippi State University and Griffith while at Rutgers University.
The excitement is already brewing for the meet, with the 100 days countdown which officially began yesterday and Pompey herself is ecstatic to see the return of the event.
Pompey has already launched a website for the meet (www.aliannpompeyinvitational.com) and has been creating a buzz on social media.
“I am excited for this year’s edition of the AP Invitational. Last year I committed to making it an annual event and this will be a true test of the ability to do so. I am grateful for the sponsors that have already committed and finalised their contributions. I am still working out the details with a few others, but I am confident that we’ll complete those shortly,” Pompey stated in a press release.
This year the Guyana Olympic Association, International Association of Athletics Federations, South American Athletics Confederation (ConSudAtle) and Ramada (Princess) Hotel are all again on board as sponsors for the event.
The event is also supported by the Ministry of Education and Trackalerts. Sponsorship from an international company is also said to still be in the works, with the details being finalised.
“It’s with great pleasure that we’ll be working with companies and organisations that will share the vision for sports, and recognise the different layers that are affected here,” Pompey said of the support she’s been receiving
“It’s a great way to continue to bring international exposure to Guyana’s shores.”
It was last year that Pompey, now a retired athlete, who currently serves as a sprint coach at St John’s University in New York, finally says her dream came true to bring a premier event to Guyana that attracted international competition while showcasing what Guyanese had to offer.
Pompey is a four-time Olympian, World Championship finalist, Commonwealth gold and silver medallist, Pan American and Central American and Caribbean (CAC) medallist.
Pompey expressed how heartfelt it was to see her fellow Guyanese athletes perform as well as they did last year.
“I got a bit emotional watching Kadecia, Brenessa, Devaun Barrington and others win on their home turf with commanding efforts. It should be the norm. We have such a talented group of athletes in the pipeline that we owe them an all of Guyana to ensure that this is a tradition.”
The event is open to the public with an admission cost of $1 000 for regular and $5 000 for VIP.