admin

Jamual John takes Ricks & Sari Memorial Road Race title Aug 06, 2024 Sports Winners across all events pose with spoils at the conclusion of the 2024 Ricks and Sari Memorial Road Race. Kaieteur Sports – Jamual John clinched first place in the 20th Edition of the Ricks and Sari Memorial Cycle Road Race on Sunday. Jamual, who has had a longstanding rivalry with Briton John, crossed the finish line in an impressive 1 hour, 40 minutes, and 26 seconds (1:40:26). The 46-mile race, which took riders from Schoonord to Ruby on the East Bank Essequibo and back, was marked by a fierce battle between the two Johns. Throughout the race, Jamual and Briton engaged in, an intense back-and-forth, providing spectators with an exhilarating show of endurance and skill. In the end, it was Jamual who emerged victorious, leaving Briton to settle for second place. Cortis Dey of KFC Evolution rounded out the top three. In the Junior category, Alex Newton dominated the competition, securing the first-place spot. Alexander Leung followed in second, with Jaime Kennedy completing the podium in third. The Veterans/Masters Category saw Alex Mendes take first place, with Paul Choo-wee-nam and Segun Hubbard finishing in second and third places, respectively. Abigail Jeffrey of the Kaieteur Attack Racing Cycle Club (KARCC) claimed victory in the Female category race, demonstrating remarkable prowess and determination. The Over 50 Masters race featured a competitive field, with Mark Spencer taking home the first-place position. Ian Jackson finished in second place, while Talim Shaw secured third. The Ricks and Sari Memorial Cycle Road Race, hosted by Ricks and Sari Agro Industries Limited in collaboration with the Flying Ace Cycle Club, commemorated the 20th anniversary of the passing of Regan Rodrigues, affectionately known as the “Gentle Giant.” The event not only honoured Rodrigues’ memory but also showcased the vibrant and competitive spirit of the local cycling community. Related Similar Articles

VMFA Trinidad trip hailed a massive success – Says Coach Vurlon Mills Aug 06, 2024 Sports Vurlon Mills Football Academy U12 team share photo-op in Trinidad and Tobago. Kaieteur Sports – A team of spirited young footballers from the Vurlon Mills Football Academy (VMFA) competed in Trinidad’s Invitational Summer Cup over the weekend. Under the leadership of coach and founder Vurlon Mills, the 16-member U12 boys’ team represented the academy well at the event organised by the Athletic International Academy (AIA) of Trinidad. This historic occasion marked the first time any local club or football organisation has provided a U12 team the opportunity to participate in an international event. The VMFA boys began their campaign last Friday at the Eddie Hart Stadium. Although the final results didn’t fully capture their success, the team played six games over the two-day tournament, securing two wins and four draws, and scoring a total of six goals. Fabio Kowlessar and Raheem Gill stood out as top performers, each netting two goals, while Godfrey Greaves and Simeon Devonish accounted for one goal each. Midfielder, Fabio Kowlessar accounted for two goals in the tournament. In an interview with coach Mills, he expressed great satisfaction with the trip’s success. “This competition was a huge success for the Vurlon Mills Football Academy. I am extremely proud of the boys’ achievements. They performed well, and we met all our objectives thereof. Averaging six goals in six games is definitely a plus as we prepare for more tournaments in the future,” Mills explained. Coach Mills engaging in traditional pep-talk with the guys before play. Mills also emphasized that the tournament was more about achieving objectives, rather than just the results; it was about giving these boys experience and exposure to different cultures and a feel for being part of a professional or national setup. “I believe we have achieved that,” he added. The academy extended warm thanks to the parents and the staff at VMFA for their hard work and dedication in making their first international trip a success. Special thanks were given to sponsors such as KFC Guyana, The Siskin Group, ExxonMobil Guyana, Ministry of Education, MVP Sports, E-Net, SBM Offshore, SQ Apparels, and the First Lady of Guyana, Arya Ali. Related Similar Articles

Fitness walk to honour Boxer Mike Parris set for August 11 Aug 06, 2024 Sports Boxer Mike Parris is the only Olympic Medalist from Guyana. 44th Anniversary of Guyana’s lone Olympic Medalist Kaieteur Sports – Sixty-six-year-old Michael Anthony Parris is the only Boxer from the English-speaking Caribbean to win an Olympic Medal and is still the only Guyanese to do so. Over four decades ago in the cold conditions of the former Soviet Union, a proud Parris stood on the Medal Podium and heard Guyana’s National Anthem being played. Sill, a very active Parris will join what is anticipated to be a large contingent on a fitness walk from the Bank of Guyana to the Seawall Bandstand next Sunday. Today, Tuesday will be the 44th anniversary of Parris winning the Bronze Medal which he did on August 6, 1980, in Moscow. The walk is scheduled to commence at 7:30 AM and is being held to honour the Anniversary of that tremendous achievement in the 1980 Olympics. The organisers, mainly the Parris family, disclosed the preparations for the fitness walk are going smoothly with a week away from the big day. “We have contacted sponsors who have committed to providing water and energy drinks while I have spoken to the Director of Sports and President of the Guyana Boxing Association (GBA) Steve Ninvalle who has also promised assistance from NSC,” informed Parris’ daughter. She also disclosed that a ‘good friend’ of the Parris has volunteered to help with the marketing and promotion for the Event. (Sean Devers) Related Similar Articles

GBA brings Badminton to the University of Guyana Aug 06, 2024 Sports GBA members and GOA executives including Vidushi Persaud-McKinnon recently made a presentation of Badminton gear to the University of Guyana. Kaieteur Sports – The Guyana Badminton Association (GBA) continued its ongoing programme as the sport made its way onto the grounds of the University of Guyana. The GBA spiked off their Shuttle project more than a year ago, with the sport being introduced across various learning institutions in Guyana. Most recently, collaboration between the GBA and the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA), saw even newer heights being reached. Students and teachers of the Mon Repos Primary School in collaboration with the National Sports Commission (NSC), alongside the aforementioned associations, made a huge step as they continue to build on Guyana’s rich legacy of badminton. Among the items presented, Rackets and Shuttles were donated to further encourage students to engage in physical exercise and develop their athletic skills. Some of the UG students having a chat with national/international player Priyanna Ramdhani. Meanwhile, national female champion and internationally decorated badminton star, Priyanna Ramdhani along with other national players, maintain their presence throughout these sessions, constantly imparting knowledge of the sport to the students. Students also learn first hand, the fundamentals of badminton from Guyana’s premier athletes and coaches, who continue to push the sport to the top, while opening the door for future badminton stars. Related Similar Articles

PNC, AFC proving Jagdeo right Aug 06, 2024 Features / Columnists, The GHK Lall Column Kaieteur News – PPP General Secretary and strongman Bharrat Jagdeo is on record saying very boastfully and boisterously that the ‘PPP is the only multiethnic party in Guyana.’  Score one for Guyana’s biggest grandstander and fake political grandmaster.  I give jack his jacket, and though Jagdeo has done everything in his power to be hauled away in a straitjacket, the jacket that is due to him (multiethnic) must be given to him, as a matter of principle.  It is what is right, what speaks for itself, when compared to his fine fellows in the opposition PNC and AFC camps. GHK Lall The PNC has its slate of leaders.  Frankly, it is that same colour, has the same brittle texture of the tablet on which we used to write.  The surging, floating, parading AFC came out with its own board of men with luminous gleams, and it is the same damn thing all over again.  A board of leaders to stand for governing multiethnic Guyana.  It is my anguished duty to recommend an urgent visit to the optometrist, and while they are it, a consultation with an ophthalmologist and cataract specialist could all be of immense benefit.  He who hath ears must hear.  He who does not have eyes had better take up another profession in Guyana.  The shortsighted and color challenged had better leave the politics to me.  Take up yoga dancing or bird watching are my recommendations.  Yes, I hear that there is strident opposition to tokenism and other forms of Machiavellianism, and those do have much going for them. But the Cooperative Republic of Guyana is not the United Kingdom.  In fact, there is nothing that can be said to be cooperative about it.  Check with a watching and absorbing and concluding electorate.  Who are these people?  How come there is no one that looks like me?  There is politics, then there is realpolitik.  Tokenism it may be, and even in the PPP.  But tokenism has a special fragrance about it that is more seductive than L’oreal and Lancôme put in a glass bottle together.  Glass bottle to distinguish from the miracle of a plastic bottle, and just so that all could be on the same page. Jagdeo showed that he has what it takes to rise to the challenge and master the dark arts of tokenism.  Are Aubrey Norton and C.A. Nigel Hughes conceding in the public arena that Jagdeo has gotten the better of them on this one?  Are both Mr. Hughes and Mr. Norton silently thundering by their unwillingness, their tone deafness, that they are lesser men, leaders of a lower cast, than Jagdeo is?  Though that takes some doing, obviously they have handed that higher ground to him with their slates and boards of pilots and princes to clear the way in the looming elections thickets ahead.  Now for a dose of bitter reality that is Guyana’s public racial medicine. There is tokenism, then there are optics.  Seeing is believing.  Believing is choosing.  Choosing gives a chance at winning.  Something just don’t ask me what yet. Guyana’s three political musketeers know what makes the local electorate tick.  Tokenism feeds into keeping up appearances.  Nobody is fooled, but all and sundry pretend to be recipients of some unknown strain of genius.  I will stick to the li’l commonsense that I have.  Jagdeo might be the biggest hypocrite in Guyana in this business about multiethnic, but in politics such an attribute is priceless for its attractiveness.  On the opposition side, this simple question is dared to be asked, now that I have crossed the color line: are there these few women in political Guyana?  Women of pedigree and prowess.  Women of grand visions and of ordinary hopes and dreams.  I keep trying to insert this little needle into the consciousness of Jagdeo, Norton, and Hughes: for all thy knowing, get some knowing. Somebody must make sacrifices that matter to the voting public.  To the PPP: make the sacrifice of being less corrupt, so that the people can have a glimpse of what is clean governance.  To the PNC: cease being so uniform for that is the best proof of what is genuine internal spiritual reform.  And if that is not understood, then try this uppercut to the hard skull: make the required sacrifice for the greater good: stop being so black, for a chance to stack up a little.  With the dismayed and undecided people who sit on fences and think.  With those who have had it up to their eyeballs with the PPP crocodiles and their feasting at the rich table of the people, who are left hungry and wanting.  To the AFC: appreciate that impatience and arrogance do not substitute well for ignorance.  Make the sacrifice of a few stepping down, biding their turn, so that the group is not made to suffer due to selfishness. Some parts of this are what killed the PNC and AFC in their 2015-2020 governance interval.  Self-help took precedence over self-sacrifice.  A pay raise in the early days set the stage for what was to follow.  One wise party man had said that properly compensated MPs would resist the tentacles of corruption.  Some wise fella he turned out to be.  Everybody wants everything for themselves now.  My advice may not be exemplary of sagacity, but it has its merits.  Astute politicians give the people what they want, so that they can get what they want later. If those are the leadership slates of the PNC and AFC, then they just partitioned Guyana and the minds of Guyanese.  Good luck!  Good hunting! (The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.) Related Similar Articles

Don’t drink and drive Aug 06, 2024 Editorial Kaieteur News – Home Affairs Minister, Robeson Benn declared last week what many citizens knew before that most road accidents deaths are caused by young male drivers who visit bars and other places to indulge in alcohol consumption. He highlighted that between 2021 and 2022 road deaths decreased to below 100 but last year’s statistics has now jumped to around 179. He noted that this has created a problem where Guyana is now internationally ranked at number 63, in terms of road deaths. The minister further disclosed that in 2020, 5,699 cars were registered, with more already being in operation on the roadways. By 2023, this number increased, averaging over 15,000 vehicles. The traversing of lorries, minibuses, and pick-ups along the roadways also saw a drastic increase. According to the Home Affairs Minister, more attention will be placed on traffic during the weekends, and in the evenings. Minister Benn then said he plans to consult the Attorney General to increase traffic fines three times more than it is presently, to bring the situation under control. “We have to strengthen the amount of sanctions, strengthen the amount of public awareness effort, strengthen the meetings and visits that we make to people…Strengthen our public-private partnership,” the minister stated at a road safety forum last Friday. It is time for the government to acknowledge that the country’s highways have become the death zones in Guyana and every effort must be made to reduce the senseless carnage on the roadways. The fact that only a handful of the thousands of drunk drivers are apprehended is a testimony to the failure of the police and the authorities. People tend to think that pedestrians and bicyclists are the most vulnerable to the dangers of the road but the truth is drunk drivers and their passengers are more at risk of losing their lives in traffic accidents. Most drunk drivers are impaired and tend to drive recklessly. They are not afraid of the police. The government and the police must take drastic action to make the roads safer and reduce the high number of fatalities, especially among children and senior citizens. Not only must the police and the government be blamed for the accidents and deaths on the roads, but also drivers, particularly those operating minibuses and passenger cars. Motor cyclists, bicyclists, pedestrians and alcohol must also be blamed. Drivers must not drink and drive; they must be alert and should be more sensitive to the presence of other road users. They must exercise caution at all times so as to make the roads safer. While some feel a stricter regime of licensing is needed to reduce fatalities on the roads, others have demanded more traffic enforcement by the police and more severe penalties for drivers who violated the traffic laws. They also believe that there should be an apprentice period for new drivers in order for them to gain sufficient experience before allowed to drive alone, especially at nights and in rainy conditions. Passing a driver’s test and obtaining a license are not enough for drivers or motorcyclists to drive or ride by themselves as is currently the case. Statistics have shown that most traffic accidents and deaths are caused by drunk drivers, speeding and by drivers who overtake other vehicles in high-risk areas such as intersections, entrances to shopping malls and in areas where there are solid double yellow lines. Also, some motorcyclists do not wear their helmets and protective equipment properly. Drivers and motor cyclists must always assume that other drivers have not seen them or that they are in their blind spot. Unfortunately, some drivers are easily distracted and often forget that animals also use the roads. They must be aware that animals are considered kings in their own kingdoms and this applies to the roads that they use at will. It is better to save a life than to take one, therefore it would be wise for drivers to respect the speed limits to ensure that their ability to control their vehicles are not compromised. Drivers should also adjust their driving to adapt to hazardous road conditions such as rains. Motor cycles should avoid the show-off spectacle and be considerate of others. Safety requires all users of the roads to remember the five “Cs” and to know what defensive driving is. Related Similar Articles

The freedom from chattel slavery African Guyanese enjoy today must be cherished Aug 06, 2024 Letters Dear Editor, The freedom from chattel slavery African Guyanese enjoy today must be cherished and defended at all costs. This freedom represents a right fought for over centuries by our ancestors. Had they given up we would have all been living in bondage today. That this hard-won freedom is not being allowed to thrive by the Jagdeo/Ali regime must be of concern to all self-respecting Africans. Freedom does not represent the regime denying the African man, woman and child the right to economic, political, social and cultural self-determination. Freedom is not boasting that 88 million measly Guyana dollars were given to African groups to celebrate Emancipation even more so with the attached conditionality that the PPP leaders or representatives must attend the events. Freedom is not grudgingly giving African Guyanese low costs contracts to clean drains, build small bridges and parade the recipients like prized cattle. Freedom is not denying IDPADA-G state funding to function in a manner that would empower African Guyanese then creating a rival organization that takes political directives and reduces Africans’ worth to frivolity by solely engaging in merriment. Freedom is not denying Critchlow Labour College state subvention in order that poor people won’t get a second chance for education, employment or to lift themselves out of poverty.  These contemptuous acts are not accident, but aimed to further the stereotype of the lazy African race, incapable of managing its own affairs, without business acumen, and deserving to be led. Africans must take a stand now. Even more so in the oil and gas economy where everything is being skewed to favour of a few and leave the majority out. Africans must stand up, unashamedly, unapologetically and demand what’s rightly ours. We are no less deserving than those who are reaping the hog of the land. Not because oil money is flowing must we accept President Ali and his cohorts using state privilege and resources to desecrate events Africans hold sacred.  Emancipation is one such. Many still shed tears in reflection of what their ancestors went through. The PPP leaders don’t get it. As a matter of fact, I don’t think they care to get it. Apart from the African leaders in their midst who don’t care, are the same people who seek to equate the horrors of chattel slavery to indentureship, and as Nandlall once flaunted, that they who arrived to Guyana as indentured servants are today kings and queens. African Guyanese do not share the same experiences and when our space is invaded without regard to our history or sensibilities it irks and hurts. The Jagdeo/Ali regime is disrespectful. Had any national African leader on the Opposition side, including non-African, acted in similar manner to any other ethnic group on their special/sacred occasion it would have been resented and rightfully so. Because this is about respect and when we allow ourselves to be disrespected it does not say much about us. Hopetown, West Coast Berbice, is a village of pride. My grandfather, John Thompson, was born and grew there. I recall fond memories and African pride coursing through my veins, visiting Hopetown as a child, listening to the stories of struggles and triumphs of a proud people. That pride remains. During Emancipation many generations converge to reflect, rekindle and enjoy African culture. Some make special trips from abroad to be present at this time. This is a sacred time for the villagers whose freed ancestors bought this plantation shortly after slavery and converted it to a village. They were among the first to start the system of internal government. The Village Movement led to local, national and regional governments. Africans today have one day in a calendar year to identify and be proud of their struggles for freedom. This charade by the regime of using state bands and employees to traverse the villages, giving the impression they care about Africans historical struggles and ongoing quest for betterment is nothing less than tomfoolery and window dressing. Their day-to-day management of the state says they do not care about the African well-being. The regime is misinterpreting and abusing the nurtured value of Africans to be civil and welcoming to those who come into their space. Ours is a culture where we will give our bed to strangers that visit and lie on the floor. These are virtues not weaknesses and we must not allow anyone to think otherwise or take advantage of us. Let me be among the first to admit that sometimes we do this to our detriment. Because what this regime wanted it got, that is, another photo opportunity. The regime will tell the world that all is well between and among ethnic groups, and it is not true it is engaging in ethnic triumphalism, exclusion, and economic genocide in the African community. We must take a stand against the new form of trickery that is attempting to parade Africans to the public as content in their sufferings and willing to accept less when as a people they are entitled to significantly more as outlined and enshrined in universal declarations, the Constitution and Laws of Guyana. While I accept that Africans are not monolithic in interests, we must accept that if we do not, or enough of us do not stand in unison for what is universally acceptable, there will be further erosion of freedoms and rights so many have given their lives for that unfortunately today many take for granted. Make no mistake, whilst complacency is seeping in on the part of some, others are moving in haste to erode hard fought gains, parade some as undeserving and ill equip, as they shamelessly plunder the nation’s resources and trample on structures designed to ensure equal and equitable participation and respect for our fellowman. The Jagdeo/Ali regime does not hold these values in esteem and we must therefore fight to protect them for the good of all, for when one is affected all are affected. Sincerely, Lincoln Lewis Related Similar Articles