Completion of sporting facilities to foster sports tourism in Region 10
Representative from the Region 10 Tourism Committee, Devin Sears
The completion of the synthetic track in Bay Rock and the ongoing rehabilitation Works at Mackenzie Sports Complex will significantly impact sports tourism in Region 10, boosting economic revenue, creating thousands of jobs and creating a sense of cultural exchange between foreigners and citizens.
The rehabilitation of the Mackenzie Sports Club will give it the opportunity to host practice matches and warm-up sessions during the International Cricket Council (ICC) games in Guyana and the Caribbean, further elevating its significance on the international stage.
Representative from the Region Ten Tourism Committee, Devin Sears, speaking exclusively to Guyana Times Sport expounded on the benefits the Region 10-based internationals sports facilities will have for sports tourism.
Students participating in the Inter-District Kayaking Tournament
Sears said, “Yes, of course, sports tourism is something that is to me, it’s not explored much on an international basis, but having such a facility through a formal synthetic track and even with the rehabilitation of the Mackenzie Sports Club Ground, this here will put Linden in a category, not necessarily of its own, but ahead of the game in Guyana. Aside from Georgetown, we will have some of the best facilities that now can accommodate international matches, whether it be athletics or football, or cricket. So, we’re excited about that.”
“Our vision for sports, particularly in Linden, is to ensure that our athletes get the best facility, the best training so that they can represent Guyana, of course, on the international stage at Olympics and so forth.
“But with sports tourism specifically, having international teams or even regional teams coming to Linden, of course, that would definitely boost tourism and we will see where things go from there, but we’re very much excited about it.”
Kayaking over the past two years has been a major contributor to sports tourism in Linden with Elite, Kayaking and Nature Years as they hosted the Inter-School and Inter-District Kayaking Tournaments which gathered a large audience at the Watooka Guest House. (Omar Mckenzie)
