ExxonMobil National School Basketball Festival opens

The ExxonMobil National School Basketball Festival (NSBF) officially got underway with the opening ceremony on Saturday, July 2, at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall.
The programme, chaired by NSBF alumni and Youth Basketball Guyana (YBG) team member Tequain Vieira, opened with the parade of athletes representing the top basketball teams from across the country competing in three divisions – boys’ 14-16, boys’ under 18, and girls’ 13-18 developmental.
On hand to show their support and share best wishes to the athletes were the Culture, Youth and Sport Minister Charles Ramson Jr; Director of Sport, Steve Ninvalle; Education Ministry Permanent Secretary Alfred King; title sponsor ExxonMobil’s Public and Government Affairs Advisor, Ryan Hoppie; G-Boats (sponsor) and Daniel LaFont.
Local musical artiste Jeremiah Williams started things off with a spectacular rendition of the National Anthem.
A brief history of the tournament was then read. The first National School Basketball Festival was played from June 26-30, 2006 involving 18 schools in a single-elimination tournament. Since its inception, the Festival has been in partnership with the National Sports Commission, Education Ministry, and sponsors in an effort to develop a structured National Schools Basketball Championship. Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, the tournament had grown to almost 50 schools participating first for ranking in six separate Regional (ZONE) Tournaments, in order to qualify for the National Championship. This year, 48 teams representing 30 schools will compete for national titles in the three divisions. The tournament over the years has been used to identify prospective players for possible selection for the national youth team(s). The NSBF, or the Festival as it is known, is widely acknowledged as the National School Basketball Championships for Guyana
Omar Seymour of President’s College said the prayer for athletes. Anthony Kandar said the coaches’ oath while Ronaldo Teixeira said the officials’ oath. Student-athlete Alisande Jaiserrisingh of Queen’s College said the athletes’ oath.
YBG Co-Director Chris Bowman emphasised in his remarks the legacy of the National School Basketball Festival and pointed out that over the last 17 years, the tournament has directly impacted more than 10,000 students who have gone on to be outstanding citizens. He thanked all the sponsors and partners who have invested in this effort over the years and particularly singled out this year’s title sponsor ExxonMobil for its significant sponsorship. Bowman encouraged the student-athletes to be the best on the court, and also the best in the classroom, and leaders among their peers.
PS King, speaking on behalf of Education Minister Priya Manickchand, congratulated the organisers for remaining consistent and delivering a high-quality programme for such a long time. He said that the Ministry was on a deliberate course to have sports and education more aligned in the national curriculum because of their value. He further stated the Ministry was committed to being an active partner with YBG in delivering active programmes to young learners.
Director of Sport Ninvalle in his remarks highlighted the efforts being made by the Culture, Youth, and Sport Minister under the leadership of Minister Ramson Jr. Chief among these are the improvement of facilities and establishment of the sports academy for the 12 core sports. The Director of Sport also noted that in each of the 15 years of the Festival, the NSC and, by extension the Ministry, has always answered the call to support school and youth basketball, and as such, he was confident that the nursery of the sport was in good hands.
ExxonMobil Public and Government Affairs Advisor Hoppie expressed the company’s appreciation to be on board as this year’s main sponsor of the event, from which many benefits are derived for the students and the community at large. He specifically mentioned that this year’s partnership went beyond the first 10 days, as later there would also be the ExxonMobil Tertiary Knockout Tournament, Student-Athlete Pathway Conference, and support for the implementation of the YBG Players Development Curriculum.
Minister Ramson Jr was tasked with making feature remarks and declaring the championship open. He spoke about the need for discipline and shared his own experience of how sports played a critical part in his own success. The Minister, during his remarks, paused to invite a group of students who were a bit distracted, to come down to the court and he spoke to them directly about the value of paying attention and listening. He used the opportunity to talk about developing a winning mindset and learning how to win. Afterward, he challenged the youngsters to a game of three-on-three basketball, first to three, and promised that, with the exception of himself, the winners would each get a pair of basketball shoes. Ramson Jr then congratulated the YBG for the good work it was doing and declared the championship open.

Under-18 (Round of 16) results:
Bartica 39 points v Queen’s College 24 points
Joshua Garraway 18 points 15 rebounds (BS)
Xavier Collier 12 points (QC)
The Bishops’ High 28 points v Christ Church Secondary 26 points
Mattias Arrindell 17 points (BHS)
Demetri Rankin 13 points, 7 rebounds (CCS)
Aoirima 48 points v MacKenzie 14 points
Kelon Phillips 27 points (OR)
Josiah Lucas 8 points 12 rebounds (MHS)
Kwakwani Secondary 32 points v Mahaicony 20 points
Travis Lewis 16 points , Cordel Hoyte 10 points 7 rebounds (KK)
Shannon Wilson 10 points, 5 rebounds (MHS)
ExxonMobil Guyana is the major sponsor of this year’s tournament with support also coming from the National Sports Commission, G-Boat Guyana, Edward B Beharry & Company Ltd, and Banks DIH Ltd.