THE Guyana Table Tennis Federation, in collaboration and under the auspices of the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF), will be hosting an ITTF Level One (1) Coaches’ certification programme scheduled for December 14 to 18.
The programme will be conducted by recently certified ITTF Level One course conductor, Shavin Greene, from Linden.

Greene, who is also an International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Level One coach, General Secretary of the Linden Table Tennis Committee and teacher at the Mackenzie High School secured his credentials as an ITTF Level One course coordinator in November of 2017, when he successfully passed the ITTF course coordinators’ course held in Guyana which was conducted by ITTF Continental Development Manager, Ramon Ortega Montes.
He is now certified to conduct ITTF level one programmes internationally, Coaches Linden Johnson and Dwain Dick who also under took the ITTF course coordinators’ course under Ortega Montes were certified to conduct certification programmess for coaches at the national level under the guidance and approval of the GTTA.

The programme is self-funded by the GTTA and supported by the ITTF and forms a key pillar on which the GTTA’s development thrust stands.
It is aimed at positioning the association to establish a coach certification pathway and structure, to develop a nucleus of coaches with the right attributes, attitudes and technical capacities, to develop players with the correct technical and tactical orientation and to aid the GTTA’s decentralisation of the sport and institutional strengthening.

The GTTA has targeted teachers from schools under the National Table Tennis for Schools programme, persons who would have completed the GTTA-ITTF 12-hour programme which was conducted by Linden Johnson, in addition to club coaches and community personnel.
If persons outside of that group are interested in participating in the upcoming programme, they can contact Johnson on 621-7630 or Greene on 682-8835.
The programme is multifaceted in that it provides for the certification of level one coaches dealing with differently-abled athletes and organising community schools programmes among other topics.

Participants are expected to complete 30 participatory hours. In addition they will do a presentation on a particular subject area covered, in order to receive certification. Therefore attendance at sessions will be mandatory.
Greene will be supervised by newly appointed ITTF Pan American Development Manager, Carlos Esnard.