By Elroy  Stephney

IT has been over 30 years of selfless sacrifice and endurance that exemplified the outstanding contribution made by a champion administrator, Hakim Darul  Khan, age 64 who resides in Henrietta on the Essequibo Coast.

In an exclusive interview with Chronicle Sport, Khan expressed satisfaction with having made quite an impact in the administration of cricket in Essequibo. “I did it for the love of the game and to support our players in every regards” Khan humbly stated.

The highly regarded personality has been a tower of strength to the sporting community in Region 2 and with a high degree of humility, he had crossed many hurdles with resounding success.

Khan started his decorated career by forming the Gunners Sports Club in 1988 along with Colin Gordon, Joseph Livan and Mark Stephney. He was elected as president and led the Club to being one of the most successful in the history of Essequibo’s cricket.

During that glorious era, Gunners dominated Club cricket at both the Junior and senior level. The wide collection of trophies and other memorabilia is testimony to an institution of supremacy.

Khan’s transition was rapid as he was elevated to the Chairmanship of the North Essequibo Cricket Committee where he again showed his prowess at administering the game. He held the position for a number of years during which time he transformed the quality of cricket to another level.

 North Essequibo was unbeatable and won a number of competitions including the SN Singh Trophy and the Bristol Cup at the national level. The Team was duly recognised by the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) and was voted as the Team of the Year on three occasions during the early 2000s.

Khan was extremely instrumental in providing the balance and avenue by structurally promoting cricket locally. He was also credited for being the first to introduce female cricket in the Region and had invited Mark Harper and Emily Dodson to further promote the women’s game.

“We had a striving and very competitive club base where we had competitions being played on a regular basis, including three day cricket” acknowledged Khan with confidence. “I personally took pride in ensuring that our players were given the best opportunity to showcase their talent and I did it on many occasions with my own financial resources” Khan revealed.

 It was during that golden period of Essequibo’s cricket the likes of Trenton Peters, Jaimini Singh, Rovendra Mandolall, Mark Stephney, Beesham Seepersaud, Ramesh Narine, Orin Belfield, the late Berchmore Reid, Bentley Bishop and Ramcharran Singh emerged, among others.

The dominance of NECC, however, did not go unnoticed, but for the wrong reason as there was widespread objection for the NECC to play as a body while the other areas played as a club. By then though, NECC stood tall among the best in the country. In all of this, Hakim Khan was the driving force behind every result, including the rise in appeal for the game from the younger players.

 Not to be undone, Khan made further progress and was elevated to the presidency of the Essequibo Cricket Board (ECB) in 2011. He had replaced former rice magnate, Beni Sankar, and subsequently was also elected as vice-president of the Guyana Cricket Board.

Khan continued to serve with distinction including being an ICC Certified Match Referee who officiated at the national level. Khan was also recognised for shepherding the careers of Fidel Cameron, Lawrence Farnum, Dinesh Joseph, Ray Reid, Brian Stephney and Clain Williams; all of whom played for Gunners S.C.

 Due to his sterling contribution to Sports, Community Development and Social Work, he was bestowed with the Medal of Service (MS) by former President, David A. Granger in 2018. The National Awardee is a father of four and is also a popular businessman who remains as Essequibo’s most prolific administrator.