Consistent Britton relishes “special” Independence title

Coming in to the Guyana Table Tennis Association’s 60th Jubilee Independence tournament, it was already obvious that reigning National Champion Shemar Britton would be the man to beat. However, the “special” win did not come without its challenges.
After two weekends of competition at the National Gymnasium, the GTTA’s 60th Jubilee Independence tournament came to a close on Sunday in exciting fashion.
The men’s singles category was especially entertaining as Britton paved his way to the final with wins over Kayden Meusa and Elishaba Johnson in the quarterfinals and semis.
In the other bracket, Jonathan Van Lange endured a seven-game semi-final against Niran Bissu for the other final spot.
The pendulum swung many times in the championship game, but eventually Britton came out on top with a 4-1 win.
Speaking exclusively with Guyana Times Sport following the match, the reigning National Champion highlighted how committed he was to taking home the title.

“This tournament I tried my best to dig as deep as possible, especially in the finals, playing against Jonathan Van Lange, oh my God, he’s so talented. In the final, I experienced some cramps, but I really wanted this title, being the 60th. So, I dug deep and I was able to prevail,” he expressed.
Zeroing in on his opponent in the final, Britton had high words of praise for the challenge that Van Lange presented.
“Kind of both, because if anybody here follows sport, they’ll know Jonathan just came back from the Regional Four-Day final, so he was about three weeks without playing any table tennis and the level he played at the finals was tremendous,” Britton told this publication, “It really surprised me in the first two games, the level that he was able to play and maintain consistently. That just goes to show that he’s so talented. The final was extremely hard, but I’m happy I was able to prevail.”
Discussing the Independence tournament, Britton noted that it was one of special significance.
He explained, “Well, this is a big one for us, the celebration of the 60th Independence anniversary, so this tournament is of special significance, not only for me but for all of the athletes who competed, all of us who represented Guyana, it’s a different kind of pride to celebrate the 60th.”
The man to beat now in the sport, Britton attributed his consistency to years of hard work.
“It’s an extremely pleasing feeling, I put in a lot of work over the years, so now I’m just reaping the rewards of the work I’ve put in,” he explained.