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Covid-19 Pandemic Basketball coach urging his troops to stay fit and focused
Junior Hercules, the head coach of the national men’s basketball team which he guided to Guyana’s first Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) Championship win in July, 2018 in Suriname, during an interview with Kaieteur Sport, has called for his players to not get complacent during these troubling times.
Junior Hercules
The coronavirus (covid-19) has caused many sporting events to be halted, postponed or cancelled altogether since health officials have urged persons to avoid large crowds in an attempt to deter the continuous spread of the virus which has also affected team training.
Locally, the Guyana Amateur Basketball Federation (GABF) has decree that all basketball related activities will cease until further notice.
This has affected the start of the Georgetown Amateur Basketball Association’s (GABA) Andrew Ifill knockout tournament which Hercules and players alike had cited as a big blow towards their preparation for the CBC Championship defence later in the year.
However, Hercules explained that despite the current dilemma, his players like all athletes should stay fit, “While the covid-19 pandemic is a dreadful virus among other things, I believe that for you as an athlete there is an opportunity to set a sort of a period of training, specifically conditioning. You should be running at least two to five miles at least three times a week.”
“Clearly, this presents an opportunity for you to work on simple things like free throws which has plagued Guyana at the national level. There is also something that is an asset throughout basketball and it has evolved; the three-point shot, these are things you can work on as an individual to not only stay sharp but to up your game.”
Hercules, who also serves as the technical director of the GABF, further lamented that, “Cardio is also very important. Do resistance training; push-ups etc., ensure you enhance your strength. These are things that you can do or keep doing during these troubling times that this sad virus has given us.”
In an invited comment this week with General Secretary of the GABF; Patrick Haynes, he disclosed that, “As of direction of FIBA, all basketball activities has been postponed for 30 days”, following which an evaluation will be done and measures taken after based on the evaluation.
Haynes further explained that he CBC has not mooted to have their regional senior championships postponed or cancelled and 15 men’s team have showed interest in participating while Jamaica has offered to host the men’s championship.
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