Alexander “Alex” Bunbury making waves in sports through ABSAA
Alexander “Alex” Bunbury, who was born on June 18, 1967 in the East Coast Demerara village of Plaisance in Guyana, is a retired Canadian soccer player who used to play as a striker. Now retired, this footballer has not forgotten his proverbial roots, and constantly seeks to impact sports in Guyana through the organization which he has founded, the ‘Alex Bunbury Sports and Academics Academy’ (ABSAA).
Guyana-born Canadian football legend Alex Bunbury and team ABSAA showing appreciation to The Outdoor Store and Pet Shop for their unwavering support
Bunbury aims to launch the ABSAA-GUYANA Project, which would be a step higher than the current non-profit organization which he heads, and hopes to build and manage a multi-million-US dollar, eco-friendly, state-of-the-art sports, academics and resort facility in Guyana.
The US$100 million multipurpose facility he has in mind would be built on the Ituni road, about 15 minutes’ drive from Linden, and would be the flagship facility for the other regions, with satellites mirroring it.
Bunbury has been collaborating with other Guyanese investors who share the conviction that this facility can propel Guyana into the 21st century in terms of sports, and be beneficial to Guyanese citizens as it would also create thousands of well-paying jobs.
Bunbury explained that US$3 million would be used as life insurance, so if anything goes wrong, the Government would be repaid by the insurance. The investors also plan to repay all money borrowed within a 24-month period, and no taxpayers’ money would be used, as this project is fully funded and ready to go. Once approved, it can be completed in 18-22 months.
Bunbury played football mainly for Marítimo in Portugal during a 13-year professional career, and for the Canadian national team for 11 years.
Bunbury played in all three of Canada’s games at the 1985 FIFA World Youth Championship in the Soviet Union. He made his debut with the senior side in an August 1986 Merlion Cup match against Singapore, and went on to earn 65 caps and score 16 goals during 11 years.
Ranked fourth in the All-Time Scorers List in June 2008, and eighth in appearances representing the nation in 30 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, Bunbury had also participated in the inaugural 1989 FIFA Futsal World Championship.
Bunbury’s final international appearance was in a November 1997 World Cup qualification match against Costa Rica, a game in which Paul Dolan, Geoff Aunger, Frank Yallop and Colin Miller also said farewell to the national team.
