Guyana to participate in Roraima Cup Int’l Judo Tourney

May 05, 2009 Sports

– Nine-member delegation leaves for Brazil on Saturday

The Guyana Judo Association (GJA) will be sending a nine-member delegation to Brazil to participate in the one-day Roraima Cup International Tournament on Saturday.

GJA President Geoffrey Sankies told Kaieteur Sport that the three officials and six players are scheduled to depart Georgetown by bus on Thursday evening and will travel to Boa Vista via the Lethem trail.
Sankies will lead the delegation, while the squad will be managed by Dominic Gaskin and coached by sixth dan black belt, Charles Ambrose.

Sankies said that while preparation could have been better, he is confident that the youngsters will give of their best in Brazil. He added that Ambrose did all he could with the team in the limited time available. According to Sankies, who will fly to Brazil because of a hip problem, which will make an overland trip uncomfortable for him, this is the second time that a national judo team will be participating in the neighbouring country.

“We sent a team in 1970 to Londrina in the State of Parana in the South of Brazil for the Pan American Championships and this is a great opportunity for those going now to showcase their skill.” He explained that while he expects the team to win some medals, the exposure gained from this trip should be extremely beneficial for the participants and the future of the sport locally.

“While this is an international competition, the standard is not expected to be as high as the Pan American games and this gives us (GJA) the chance to assess where we are in terms of standard, so that we will be aware of what areas we need to work on as we work on developing the sport locally and winning medals for Guyana in the future,” Sankies explained.
(Sean Devers)