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Colts crystallise Phillip George legacy with tournament
President of Colts Basketball Club, Michael Singh and Coach, Vijay Panday (centre) usher in the inaugural Phillip George Legacy Basketball Championships yesterday at the Original Palm Court on Main Street amid representatives from participating clubs.
By Edison Jefford
Colts Basketball Club yesterday formally announced that it will crystallise the legacy of former Coach, the late Phillip George with a knockout Division III competition, and Division I League that will commence on November 16 on Burnham Court.
The tournament that will be called ‘The Phillip George Legacy Basketball Championships’ will be an annual contest, and has attracted the participation of all the top clubs in Georgetown with the winner taking home $100,000 and the Championship trophy. The top three clubs will also be given prizes with the Original Palm Court among the main sponsors. Colts’ President, Michael Singh, yesterday informed the media at the official launch of the event, that the competition is a fillip for development in Georgetown where not very much is happening for basketball. Therefore, he said the tournament ought to be supported.
“We consider this tournament a good one for Georgetown that is going through a tough time for sponsorship and so on. We are encouraging everyone to come out and support this event because Phillip George had given his life for this sport,” Singh said.
He described the former Colts Coach as a leader, mentor and father of the club. George died last December and was buried in January this year. He is credited with the development of several of the junior and senior players that went on to represent Guyana.
Singh said he does not want the tournament to fizzle out. “My commitment is long-term and our sponsors are long-term as well. Anybody wants to play, we will not shut our doors, the aim is to promote basketball; we want this event to be the annual closing of the calendar year,” Singh said, adding that the intention is to grow the event over the years.
Speaking to Kaieteur Sport yesterday, the Colts President expressed his disappointment that such a major undertaking failed to attract the presence of a representative from the Guyana Amateur Basketball Federation (GABF) even though the club had written to them. Singh believes that the federation missed an opportunity to partner with basketball in Georgetown.
Colts’ Coach, Vijay Panday indicated that the tournament came out of a genuine effort to keep George’s name and legacy alive. Panday believes that the best way to do so was to host an event that George, who was omniscient at the Burnham Court, would have loved.
The competition has already received the endorsement of all the major clubs in Georgetown with Robert ‘Bobby’ Cadogan indicating that it is good for basketball if the top clubs see it fit to host tournaments. Cadogan said that Colts is moving in the right direction.
The Division I contest will result in the division of the top eight clubs in the City into two groups for a round-robin playoff.
Following that phase, the top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-final; December 16 has been set as the date of the final.
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