PPP/C says will serve up indoor stadium, pro-level conditioning facility for athletes in next term

The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has pledged to continue expanding investment in sport through the establishment of a new indoor stadium and a high-performance conditioning facility for athletes, if it is re-elected to office on September 1.

The party made these and other bold commitments for the continued development of the sector at its manifesto launch Monday at the new Pegasus Corporate Center, Kingston.

According to the manifesto, the party, once re-elected, will construct a new “world-class indoor stadium” with a seating capacity of 15,000, designed to host boxing matches, Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) championships, and concerts.

The party intends to establish a high-performance conditioning facility for athletes to support pre-competition preparation, high intensity training, and rehabilitation.

Both facilities would be a first-of-its-kind in Guyana.

Over in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), the PPP/C says it will transform the Albion Sports Complex into a world class cricket academy, even as it continues to upgrade community grounds countrywide.

Albion Sports Complex has produced several national cricketers who went on to play for the West Indies, namely, Sew Shivnarine, Narsingh Deonarine, Sewnarine Chattergoon, Veerasammy Permaul, Devendra Bishoo and Gudakesh Motie.

With many national athletes having retired with no post-retirement plan, the PPP/C has said that it will establish a career pathway for those athletes.

The party said that those pathways will include training and coaching, “to ensure our best athletes remain gainfully engaged beyond their competitive years and pass on the benefit of their skills and experience to our young people”.

Between 2020 to 2025, the PPP/C government made an unprecedented investment of $17.6 billion in sport; a large portion of which funded the upgrades of 400 community and sports grounds.

During that time, the first Doubles Squash Court in the Caribbean was completed, and the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall, the Guyana National Stadium and the National Aquatic Centre were all renovated.

Meanwhile, three cricket stadiums – at Anna Regina in Region Two, Palmyra in Region Six, and McKenzie in Region Ten – are under construction, along with several multi-purpose indoor sports halls in Regions One, Three, Seven, Eight and Nine.

Multi-purpose sports halls are also being built in Leonora, Lethem, Mabaruma, Mahdia, and Mongrippa Hill.