Three Guyanese make Pan Am All-Star hockey teams

By Avenash Ramzan

Three Guyanese have been named in the Pan American All-Star Indoor hockey teams for 2017, the first time more than one player from Guyana has made the cut to the elite teams.

Marzana Fiedtkou is the only Guyanese to make the Women’s team, while Medroy Scotland and Robert France were drafted in the Men’s line-up. Both teams are made up of 12 players each.

On Monday afternoon, Social Cohesion Minister with responsibility for Sport, Dr. George Norton, presented Certificates of Achievement to the three players in the presence of Guyana Hockey Board executives, President Philip Fernandes and Secretary Tricia Fiedtkou.

Fernandes was understandably elated, especially with the news coming just months after Guyana quite successfully hosted the Pan American Indoor Hockey Cup for the first time.

“I think it’s very exciting for Guyana to have representation on a Pan American All-Star team. It is a very great achievement for us, as a small hockey nation within the Pan Am to not just have one representative but to have three. In the past we’ve only ever had one person achieve this accolade, and now to have three shows that we’re progressing and the quality of the sport is increasing, and we really look forward to what this can produce for us in the future,” Fernandes commented.

Minister Norton expressed optimism that the sport will continue to bring success to the nation.

“The fact that hockey is breaking new grounds in this area we can say that we’re expecting if not a gold medal at least a medal in the CAC Games and we’re looking forward to that. I’m happy to be associated in whatever way with hockey,” Dr. Norton said. 

This latest development is another plus for hockey, a sport that has steadily been on the rise. Just last November, both the Male and Female national teams qualified for the 2018 Central American and Caribbean Games in Colombia.