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The Executive Committee of the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) recently appointed and ratified the Women in Sport Commission, which will serve from September 2024 to September 2026.

This was done pursuant to a nomination process.

The newly appointed members of the Women in Sport Commission are:

Chair: Nicolette Fernandes

Vice-Chair: Denise Jeffrey

General Secretary: Dacia Cummings

Members: Sileena Arjune, Ashley Khalil and Ayanna Wickham-Watson

The GOA, in a press release, highlighted that in order to create a system which facilitates and enables the efficient functioning, support and communication of the work of this key Commission, the Executive Committee would be grateful for the nomination of one person from each Federation to serve, support and sit on the council of this important Commission.

Submission must be made on or before Friday October 11, 2024.

The appointed commission members in collaboration and under guidance and support of the Executive Committee of the GOA will guide, direct and support the work of this commission.

The Women in Sport Commission is a key body within the GOA, mandated by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to promote and enhance girls’ and women’s access to sports across all levels.

The Commission will focus on increasing female participation as athletes, coaches, leaders and volunteers, while ensuring gender parity and empowerment throughout Guyana’s sporting landscape.

The operator of Enchanter Creek has issued a heartfelt apology following the tragic drowning of two young girls – Akira La Rose, 10, and Joylyn Jack, 11 – which occurred at the facility on Sunday.

The operator expressed deep regret for the incident and acknowledged the need for improved safety measures.

“I’m sorry about the incident,” he said.

At an emergency meeting held at the Arthur Chung Conference Center on Monday, the operator explained that typically, two staff members oversee the facility.

However, on the day of the drowning, only one staff member was present as the other had briefly left to run an errand. He admitted that it is challenging to monitor all areas, especially when the crowd is large.

“We also need help from the parents to keep them [the children] safe.

“I’m not trying to shift blame but it’s not an effort alone on the operators. We need the parents also. We have sign boards and we have lines in the water.

“These kids were found like 15 feet of the line,” he explained.

In response to the tragedy, Minister of Home Affairs Robeson Benn announced that all water-based recreational facilities must put in place trained lifeguards, clear signage, and designated children’s areas within a week.

“I would like to see those things done this week,” Benn stated.

Alick Athanaze missed scoring his first test century of his career as the West Indies salvaged a draw against South Africa in the opening test match at the Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad and Tobago, yesterday.

West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite says he is pleased with his batting unit’s display during the drawn 1st Test against South Africa at the Queen’s Park Oval.

The Dominican left-handed batsman hit 92 as the West Indies, needing 298 for victory, reached 201/5 on the last day of the rain-affected test match.

“I am happy with our batting group. The guys are quite positive, I am proud of the batting unit,” he said after the match.

“We believed we could get those runs. It wasn’t going to be easy, We need to keep going from strength to strength. The pitches are a bit slower in the Caribbean. For me, it’s about adjusting when to go slow and when to accelerate,” Brathwaite added.

Brathwaite praised the batting of Athanaze and Kavem Hodge during the first Test and the preceding England series.

“It’s all about belief and planning and bat as per the plan. Alick showed us that today. Hodge was good in England. His plan was the sweep and he struck to it, even though he got out to a sweep,” Brathwaite said.

Alick Athanaze hits 92 and guides the West Indies to draw the opening test match against South Africa.

Athanaze faced 116 balls hitting nine boundaries in his 218-minute stay at the crease, helping the home team recover from a shaky start after they lost Captain Kraigg Brathwaite for a duck in the first over and fellow opener Mikyle Louis for nine, with the score on 18.

Athanaze, playing in his eighth Test match, shared in half-century stands with fellow Dominican Kavem Hodge and all-rounder Jason Holder.

He had earlier added 46 for the third wicket with debutant Keacy Carty, who hit 31 with four boundaries, and 63 with fellow Dominican Hodge, whose score of 29 included four boundaries.

But as he entered the 90’s, Athanaze was caught at backward square leg after Keshav Maharaj (4-88) shortened his length, inducing Athanaze into the sweep shot and top-edged it to Ryan Rickelton, leaving the West Indies at 192/5.

Maharaj was later declared the Man of the Match, bagging 8-164 from his 66.2 overs.

Former captain Jason Holder (31) and Vice-captain Joshua Da Silva then batted out the remaining overs to ensure the game was drawn.

The captains shook hands on a draw in fading light with 6.4 overs of play remaining. A total of 142 overs were lost during the five days of the match.

Earlier, South Africa, with a first innings lead of 124, declared their second innings on 173.3 with Tristan Stubbs hitting his first Test fifty, scoring a quick-fire 68 off 50 balls with six boundaries and two sixes before he was bowled by Kemar Roach, while opener Tony de Zorzi scored 45 off 60 deliveries with four boundaries, caught at the wicket by Da Silva off the left arm spinner, Jomel Warrican, whose two wickets cost 57 runs off nine overs.

Following the game, Brathwaite said he was happy with the batting.

“The guys were quite positive. So proud of the batting unit. We believed we could get those runs. It wasn’t going to be easy. We need to keep going from strength to strength. The pitches are a bit slower in the Caribbean.

“For me, it’s about adjusting when to go slow and when to accelerate. It’s all about belief and planning and bat as per the plan. Alick showed us that today. Hodge was good in England. Alick, his plan was to sweep, and he stuck to it, even though he got out to a sweep,’ Brathwaite added.

South African Temba Bavuma said his team tried “our best to get a result in our favour.

“But the wicket didn’t break up as much as we expected. In the end, it was a good, competitive game of cricket. We went in with an extra batter as a cushion. As batters, we will like to be a bit more ruthless and convert those fifties into hundreds.

“We lost time because of the weather. With the bowling resources we had, we tried our best. Keshav and KG, supported by others. A little bit more time and things could have been different,” he added.

Rai Benjamin won USA a gold medal at the recent Paris Olympics when he won the men’s 400m hurdles event with a season best timing of 46.46 seconds. And it wasn’t just the Americans that celebrated Rai’s triumph.

Antigua, one of the Caribbean islands, also broke into joyous celebrations.

Why?

Rai is the son of former West Indies fast bowler Winston Benjamin who hails from Antigua. Winston played 21 Tests and 85 ODIs between 1986 and 1995 taking a combined 161 wickets.

Rai returned from Paris with two gold medals – one from 400m hurdles and second from men’s 4×400-meter relay.

“I have never met anyone who would have experienced a similar feeling; it was a surreal moment (watching his son win 400m hurdles),” Winston was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz.

“I’m very happy for his achievement, because I know how much he worked, I know how hard it was for him and how much he really wanted it,” he added.

Rai, born in USA, dabbled in cricket and American football before settling on track and field. At the Tokyo Games, he finished second in the event with Norway’s Karsten Warholm claiming the gold.

In Paris though, the results were reversed with Rai triumphing ahead his rival Warholm who took silver.

“He’s (Rai) an American. He was born in the US, so we are celebrating him just as much as the Americans are. I know what it meant for him to win an individual gold in particular. I know how hard he had been working, and I know that at the end of the day, he didn’t leave any stone unturned. And to accomplish such a feat, it’s phenomenal,” Benjamin said.

Winston was cheering for his son from the stands at the Stade de France.

“Most of my focus was how he (Rai) started. I said to his mom, he had a different risk today because he could not see his main challengers. And then in order for him to stay, he was going to have to work on push. At the start of the race, he was striving for Warholm. I think because of the lane draw, and I knew he was feeling fit and strong, and he just went out and executed that up. I said to myself, this is it,” he said.

Eleven-year-old Jaden Haripershad who has been facing a number of medical challenges since birth, is Jacklow Primary School’s second-best performer at this year’s National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA).

Haripershad secured 472.23 marks out of a possible 504.24 in the examination, earning himself a spot at the Anna Regina Secondary located on the Essequibo Coast, Region Two.

His performance exemplifies the meaning of perseverance and is a reflection of his continuous academic excellence. He was the top speller at his school and had managed to maintained high grades.

Haripershad who hails from the Pomeroon River, struggles with cerebral palsy, club feet, and esotropia, which has caused one eye to deviate inward towards the nose.

Despite his medical condition, this young scholar’s unstoppable determination and the unwavering support of the Suddie Public Hospital rehabilitation center have allowed him to surpass expectations.

After getting his results on Thursday, he expressed his joy at securing the second spot for his school.

He said that despite suffering from esotropia, which causes partial vision, he hasn’t given up. He thanked his teachers, his mother Shelly Stephen, and his father Jeetendra Haripershad for their support.

The lad also mentioned that he aspires to become a lawyer.

“I am happy I perform well and made my parents happy. I am so happy to go on the coastland to study. It’s my dream because I want to be a lawyer,” he told this publication.

Meanwhile, his mother expressed her joy at her son’s progress, saying that he displayed determination throughout the entire preparation period and during the examination.

She admires his zest for learning and says that he always amazes her.

The elated Stephen noted that her son maintained an “A” grade in every class and is always eager to share his success with anyone he meets.

It’s taken 21 years for Fayes Gomes to build up a loyal following for her Guyanese restaurant in South London, and she must be doing something right because people travel from China and Canada to eat her food. The owner of Kaieteur Kitchen in Elephant and Castle has served Guyanese Christmas dinners in footballers’ homes, catered boat parties for Baronesses, befriended the head of the NHS, cooked for actors in the West End, and been asked to cook and send food to Germany.

Speaking to Faye, she’s warm and filled with stories from the life she’s created for herself. Even before coming to the UK Faye had a successful business in Guyana, A South American country bordering Venezuela. Becoming emotional about leaving her life behind she hesitantly shares that it was love that brought her to this country.

She met her husband at a community party and he told her he fell in love with her after a single dance. Two months later they were married and she left everything behind to come to this country. She says: “Settling here [in this country] was hard, I wanted to go home but I had friends who encouraged me to stay.”

Faye started out humbly in her own kitchen at home in the late 90s after coming from Guyana. She says: “People started hearing about me and my food and they kept coming back.” By 2003, Faye’s home business had grown and so she bought a caravan from another Guyanese trader in the Elephant and Castle shopping centre.

Over the years her customers have followed her including to her new base in Castle Square after the shopping centre was closed as part of Southwark Council’s regeneration of the area. During her time as a trader in the caravan she befriended the homeless community offering them the food left behind each day after 8pm. Even today Faye offers food to local homeless people.

Talking about the dish she is known for, which is an Amerindian dish from Guyana called Pepper Pot which is served as a Christmas morning special in Guyana. She says: “The dish is usually cooked by those living on the outskirts of Guyana with wild meat, they would make a sauce from a ground vegetable called cassava which is spicy and flavoured and this is what they would eat. However, those who didn’t have access to wild meat would use beef and oxtail, pork, cows feet, pig trotters, tripe, every part of the cow and pig and add the cassava and that is what is called Pepper Pot.”

Faye’s profile received a huge boost when food writer Jonathan Nunn visited her caravan and documented how she prepared and made her Pepper Pot recipe. According to her, he’s also the one who forwarded her name to Virgin Atlantic when they wanted to feature local businesses that people coming to London could visit, through their in-flight magazine. She says: “Jonathan advertised it so much, everyone wanted to know what Pepper Pot was.”

Faye’s love for cooking comes through when she’s asked why she is running a restaurant. Shining with excitement, she says: “I was born and grew up with my grandparents who had a baking shop baking break and cakes. We were a very big family and we all went into catering and food. I went to school and studied food and nutrition in Guyana and did really well. Here, I continued what I learnt from my entire family and from studying, that’s what I carried on here with my business.”

Talking about her customer base she says: “The people that have kept coming back, come back for many reasons. I think it’s my approach towards them, sometimes they’ll come back because when they are here and have been short of money and I tell them ‘it’s not all about money you are always here, don’t worry’.”

During her caravan days, she befriended a homeless man Michael who she stayed friends with and helped for years. Becoming Michael’s friend meant she trusted him enough to go to the bank for her and do other small jobs. A few years ago, she got a call in the morning which she didn’t answer. The next day she was told Michael had died. She was contacted by his family who knew all about her helping Michael. She says: “It was Friday, one of my busiest days, but I made all the food, closed the caravan and I got a taxi and went to his funeral.”

Faye believes her food is so popular because of the passion with which she cooks it. She said: “I cook my food with lots of love, I don’t make fun when I’m cooking my food and I take time when preparing the food.” She adds: “I have customers from all over, London, Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Canada, New York, China. I’ve had customers order food from Germany which I have sent to them.”

Kaieteur Kitchen was labelled the “best Guyanese Restaurant in London” in one glowing TripAdvisor review and for Faye, it’s a joy to see people so enthused about her food. She said: “This here, has been the best thing that has ever happened to me, this has been my joy and my all, this has been like Heaven in this place.”

A Guyanese businessman Mohamed provides financial aid for struggling mother to expand food business.

Supatra Abraham aka “Sue” formerly of Santa Rosa Moruca, North West District (NWD), a mother of three resides in Charlotte Street, Georgetown with her teenage daughter.

Being employed in the malaria department of the Georgetown Public Hospital, her meagre salary is just enough to pay bills, ensure food is on the table and send her daughter to school.

Ms. Abraham, however, was given an eye-opener when her daughter, one morning asked, why they were so poor.

With a feeling of disappointment and disdain, she realised that she must do something to better her living conditions so that her daughter could have a comfortable life.

As such, one month ago, she made a post on Facebook Market Place offering her services in puri and roti making. On that very day, she secured her first order and since then, her clientele has been growing.

She wakes up at 2:00h daily to ensure that her orders are ready for pickup at 6:00h after which she heads off to work from 8:00h to 16:00h and returns home to prepare for the next morning.

To date, she makes about 100 roti and puri each for her clients.

However, her story has caught the attention of Mr. A. Mohamed who decided to pay a visit to Ms. Abraham during which he offered his assistance to expand her business.

The businessman was very much impressed at how she faced her challenges with the main aim of turning her life around for the better.

This, he noted is a testimony that single mothers have what it takes to turn the negatives into positives and make a life for themselves and their children.

People should never give up on dreams or great ideas, sometimes you just need that one person to believe in you and your dreams can become reality so don’t be afraid to make that start, to take that leap, for a successful future you have to start now.

As such, he congratulated Ms. Abraham and wished her continued success in the future.

Those who wish to place an order for puri and roti can contact Ms Abraham on telephone number, 708-4609.

After experiencing what she described as a difficult 2023, during which her house was destroyed due to a freak storm and battling other personal issues, 48-year-old Ayesha Daniels has received the gift of a brand-new house for Christmas.

The two-bedroom building, situated in No. 28 Village, West Coast Berbice (WCB), was constructed from scratch with funding from businessman, Mr. A Mohamed.

The house, which Ms. Daniel will share with her grandson, was handed over during a simple ceremony on Sunday (Christmas Eve).

After being presented with the keys, an emotional Daniel expressed gratitude for the kind gesture extended to her.

She stated that it has been a very rough year for her but thanked God for answering her prayers by sending Mr. Mohamed whom she described as a genuine and compassionate individual.

After the unfortunate incident, she recalled receiving a telephone call from Mike.592 , a member of Team Mohamed’s late one evening who told her that Team Mohamed’s would reconstruct her home.

With joy in her heart, she breathed a sigh of relief and thought that God works in mysterious ways. She could not find enough words to thank the businessman for his generosity and promised to care for the gift which gave her a new lease of life.

Now that she has a roof over her head, she intends to restart her small food business within the village so that she can take care of herself and her grandson.

On the other hand, Mr. Mohamed was extremely happy to assist yet another Guyanese family so that they could live a comfortable life, especially during this season of sharing and giving.

He urged the mother of three to take good care of the house and extended a very Merry Christmas to her and her family.