COACH of Guyana’s senior table tennis team, Idi Lewis, said yesterday that he was extremely proud of the side, who ended their campaign at the Latin American Singles and Mixed Doubles Qualification tournament yesterday in Rosario, Argentina.

After falling short in the singles, Guyana’s hope of qualifying for this year’s Tokyo Olympics rested on the mixed doubles pair of Shemar Britton and Chelsea Edghill, but they could not get past their round of 16 clash.

In that game yesterday morning, the former Caribbean U-21 singles champions were defeated by the Ecuadorian pair of Alberto Mino and Nathaly Paredes.

The game was close, but Mino and Paredes were able to surge ahead 11-9, 11-8, 11-7, 11-9.

Overall, the national players (including Joel Alleyne and Natalie Cummings) all proved their might, but they came up against quality opponents.

Britton showed fight in the singles knockout round of 32, but he failed to advance.

Edghill, who plays for the Lourosa Table Tennis Club in Portugal, registered Guyana’s lone victory when she surged past Paraguayan Leyla Gomez 4-1 (11-8, 11-7, 17-15, 7-11, 11-5) in the round of 32 (knockout two).

Edghill also looked solid in her round of 16 clash against Guatemalan Mabelyn Enrique and even stormed to a ferocious 11-2 victory in the second set, but her opponent was experienced and composed and she made the necessary adjustments when necessary, That game finished 4-2 in favour of the Central American.

EXTREMELY PROUD

 According to the Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA), Lewis said that the team, scheduled to wing out of Argentina today, represented Guyana well.

“I’m extremely proud of my team’s performance. They did extremely well under the circumstances. With the exception of Chelsea who plays professionally in Portugal, the other members haven’t seen international competition in two years due to COVID-19 and other reasons and we were still able to be competitive against seasoned professionals with access to all necessary resources from their private and public sectors.”

Lewis a former player himself noted that with the right support Guyana could excel internationally.

“What is consistently clear from engagements like these is we are right there skill-wise. Imagine what’s possible with the level of support and exposure the other nations have available.”

Lewis also thanked the Guyana Olympic Association, GTTA and its proactive president Godfrey Munroe, who he said “went beyond and above to have Guyana represented at these trials”.