AAG forced to give up hosting rights for S.A. under-23 C/Ships

Sep 08, 2021 Sports

By Calvin Chapman

Kaieteur News – The president of Athletics Guyana (AG), Aubrey Hutson, has revealed during a recent interview with Kaieteur Sport that Guyana will not be the host of the heavily anticipated South America under-23 championships due to a couple of reasons with logistics being the main bugbear.

The AG has given up the rights to host S.A. under 23 Championships this October.

Despite the covid-19 pandemic, Athletics Guyana has been able to host eight meets already for the 2021 season and Hutson had expressed his optimism in ‘the land of many waters’ ability to host the quadrennial track meet.
However, the hosting rights for the meet that is scheduled to be contested on October 9-10 this year was given up to Ecuador which had hosted the South American championships in May month-end to much success despite the circumstances of the pandemic.
Hutson explained that, “Copa Airlines only has about two flights to Guyana per week so it would be very difficult for the other 12 South America countries to get to Guyana on time, especially with the limited options. Ecuador did a great job with the South America Senior Championships and although the meet may be pushed back by a week because of an ongoing event in Guayaquil, it is the best option right now.”
Hutson revealed that last weekend the AG held trials for the under-23 championships at the National Track & Field Center (NTFC), Leonora. The event was not publicised and it was held with strict covid-19 compliance.
The second obstacle in the AG’s way is the condition of the NTFC track which is state owned.
The administrator admitted that Athletics Guyana would’ve been looking to have rehabilitation and resurfacing works on the track underway by now but it is something that needs more time. “Our track really needs to be looked at, we are working with the government to get it done. We also need to ascertain if the initial contractor’s warranty is still valid before we engage a new contractor,” Hutson stated.
This year’s South America under-23 championships is very important because it is the last qualification route for local up and coming track & field stars for the first ever Panam sports Youth Games that is scheduled for this November in Cali, Colombia.

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