ExxonMobil Boys & Girls U14 Schools Football tournament: ExxonMobil distributes $1M+in prizes

Several secondary school football teams have triumphed in the ExxonMobil Boys and Girls Under-14 Schools’ Football tournament, and two months after their exploits, those school teams will be reaping the rewards of their labour.

At the Ministry of Education (MoE) Ground on Carifesta Avenue on Friday, the oil and gas giant presented the top four teams from each tournament with monetary prizes which will go towards the benefit of their respective schools. The prizes were to the tune of $300,000, $150,000, $75,000 and $40,000 for first to fourth place respectively for both male and female competitions.

Sharing some brief thoughts at the simple presentation ceremony, ExxonMobil’s Community Relations Advisor Ryan Hoppie touched on the company’s commitment to youth empowerment initiatives, in this case through sport.
“For ExxonMobil, empowering youth through sport and education is a focus area for our social investment. We continue to strive to make positive contributions to the communities across Guyana, and to have tangible effects in terms of the benefits that you see throughout,” Hoppie shared.
The ExxonMobil representative added, “ExxonMobil is happy to give you the opportunity to put all of your hard work into practice at the competition level. It is this valued component of the strategic sponsorship that benefits the school and the community at large. Whether you have chosen sporting gear, educational, IT or classroom items, you have chosen to enhance your school community in the areas of your interest.”
Charlestown Secondary, by virtue of championing both the boys’ and girls’ tournaments, took home the king’s share of prizes. With $600,000 at their disposal, the Howes Street establishment opted to outfit their school with new projectors, laptops, computers and speakers, in addition to complete football gear kits for both teams, inclusive of clothes, shoes and equipment.
For Ann’s Grove Secondary, second-place finishers in the boys’ competition, a school shed was built and a printer was acquired for the school’s use. Third place finishers Cummings Lodge Secondary utilised their winnings to purchase gear for the team.
In the female competition, East Ruimveldt Secondary, who finished the tournament as runners-up, acquired fans, bicycles and a microwave for their school. Both Campbellville Secondary and New Central High School used their respective third and fourth place prizes to purchase gear.
This year’s edition was the third installment of the Petra-Organized ExxonMobil tournament, which began in 2018 and was put on pause in 2020 and 2021 owing to the Coronavirus pandemic.