More opportunities needed for hinterland athletes, says Hastings

There is no doubt that the recently-concluded Heritage Games showcased a wealth of talent that is often hidden away within our hinterland communities. However, it has been highlighted that the annual Heritage Games hosted by the Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Ministry is one of the few platforms that athletes have to showcase their skill.

At the conclusion of the Heritage Games, Minister of Public Affairs, Dawn Hastings highlighted that there needed to be discussions on how sport within hinterland communities could be developed.
“From what I have seen this evening, I think as a government we have to do a lot more for our hinterland students, in that affording them opportunities not only to play during Heritage,” Hastings said.
The Minister went on to state that although the hinterland scholarship programme existed and students were exposed to sport at their respective dormitories, more work needed to be put into making their transition to the coastland easier in relation to school and sport.
“I think we have to have some programmes that involve a smooth transition, from their communities to adapt to the coastline area,” the Minister said, revealing that she too had to adapt to the coastland after moving there in order to attend secondary school.
Additionally, the Minister went on to make the recommendation that more opportunities on the coast needed to be available or at the least, more events similar to the Heritage Games needed to be hosted.
“We’re thinking about having this sort of activity at least twice a year, because it takes too long and that momentum is forgotten when you only bring them out for once a year,” she said.
While noting that plans are being put in place to change this fact, Minister Hastings disclosed that steps are already being made in the right direction.
“We were discussing with the Guyanese Federation (football) and they said that the coach has already identified some from these games that they’re going to include to go and play in the Under-20 games sometime in Florida,”
The Guyana Football Federation is gearing up for the CONCACAF Men’s Under-20 Championship in Florida, USA, which will run from November 1 to 22, 2018. Guyana will play Guatemala, Cayman Islands, Curaçao and El Salvador in their preliminary matches and the team will be headed by Wayne Dover.