A collaborative effort between the Embassy of the United States of America, the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport through the National Sports Commission, and the Athletics Association of Guyana will see over 200 budding Guyanese Track and Field athletes benefit from expertise coaching from U.S Olympians, compliments of the U.S. Sports Envoy Programme.
The official launch of the four-day event was held Monday at the Synthetic Track, West Coast Demerara, where the Olympians worked on explaining and teaching the fundamentals of success in the sport.
The programme runs from August 19 – 22 and caters to two groups, ages 10-13 and 14-17.
Khadevis Robinson, an American retired middle-distance runner, rationalized that sport helps young people understand the choices they make in life.
“When we look at Olympians, we see the final goal, we see people celebrating on television, but it all starts with the goal in your mind and the belief, and the support of coaches”, Robinson noted.
Likewise, Mechelle Lewis Freeman, a former American track and field athlete who specialised in the 100 meters and 4×100 meter relay and is now a coach, told the athletes to envision that one day they could reach the world stage, as she, too, sat in those chairs as a young athlete and began to make her dreams a reality with hard work and dedication.
Great potential in Track and Field
In May, four coaches from the United States of America are in Guyana as part of a programme sponsored by the Government of Guyana and the National Sports Commission in collaboration with the Athletics Association of Guyana.
The coaches are working with their local counterparts to evaluate Guyana’s Olympic prospects in Track and Field.
On Monday, Minister Charles Ramson Jr. said, “We believe that Track and Field is one of the areas that has one of the biggest potentials for us, especially at global events, not just the Olympics but every global event. Why do we believe that? We have more than enough examples of countries who have done well already.”
He added that the missing link to Guyana’s talent development is elite training and programmes that move “our very good athletes into becoming world-class.”
Sports Envoys are athletes and coaches who travel overseas to lead programmes developed by U.S. embassies and consulates.
These American coaches and athletes hold sports clinics for young people and their coaches, participate in community outreach activities, and engage youth in a dialogue on the importance of leadership and respect for diversity.
