Latest update January 10th, 2025 5:00 AM
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GABF bounces ahead despite lack of funding
-Hinds puts Suriname tour in perspective
By Edison Jefford
The Guyana Amateur Basketball Federation (GABF) is trudging ahead with the development of its national
Nigel Hinds
male basketball team, despite the absence of corporate and/or government funding to ensure the country is properly represented at the Caribbean Championships.
Following the corporate snubbing of the National Club Championships and Bermuda Series early this year, Guyana heads to Suriname this weekend under similar circumstances, with no funding forthcoming from the corporate community or Government.
Guyana will tour Suriname during May 1-3, with the sole aim of continuing its preparations for the upcoming Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) Championships, set for June 13-22 in Tortola, British Virgin Islands.
Beginning with the National Club Championships, the Bermuda Series, and Challenge Series in Suriname are all GABF programmes designed to give Guyana its best opportunity at winning the Caribbean Basketball Championship.
Guyana and Suriname are slotted in the same group for CBC 2015. The other teams in the group are Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, with Bermuda rounding out the five-team grouping. The two top teams in the group will qualify for the Final Four.
Hence, the expectations at the federation are such that at the end of its first phase of preparations, it would have already played two of the teams in its group in Bermuda and Suriname. Hence, the need arose for support of its pellucid development programme.
“The Challenge Series was initiated by the GABF to ensure that the Guyana National Basketball Team benefits from an international exposure, and also from playing in an understandably hostile environment abroad,” the federation indicated on Sunday.
“The federation has expended personal funds, and invested significantly in preparatory costs as it awaits sought after funding from the Guyana Government, Corporate Community, and Guyana’s Olympic Association to ensure the Guyanese teams are well-prepared for the 2015 Caribbean Basketball Confederation Championships; this Championship being the ultimate basketball event for CARICOM territories,” the GABF continued.
Head of the GABF, Nigel Hinds informed that unlike Cricket, Football and Athletics, where the respective Federations and Associations receive annual funding from the governing bodies such WICB, FIFA and IAAF, GABF does not receive annual funding from its international affiliates, International Basketball Federation (FIBA).
“Guyana is not an exception in this regard; the same non-funding policy extends to the other 200 plus members of FIBA,” Hinds disclosed. Nevertheless, Guyana continues to move forward with its programme to have an impressive showing at CBC 2015, and hope that they get the necessary funding from stakeholders.
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