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Letter to the Sports Editor – No Goodwill for Guyana’s 2023 Goodwill Swimming Championship Team, it seems

Aug 17, 2023 Sports

Dear Sports Editor,

The Guyana Amateur Swimming Association (GASA) entered a team of fourteen swimmers to represent the Co-operative Republic of Guyana at the 27th Edition of the Goodwill Swimming Championship, August 18-20, 2023, Jamaica. Contrary to what the President of GASA has reportedly said to potential donors, there are several medal contenders in this team.

These swimmers have been training very hard and are eager to represent their country at this regional developmental meet. Attending this meet is all the more important since Guyana last participated, at this level, at the 25th Edition of the Goodwill Swimming Championship in 2019, where the team placed fourth out of nine countries, earning 43 medals (six gold, five silver and 12 bronze medals in individual categories and eight gold, four silver and eight bronze medals in the relay categories) in the process.

Even though GASA entered a team to participate in the Goodwill Swimming Championship in 2022, the first after the Covid-19 pandemic ended, they failed to send the team to represent Guyana. At that time GASA, under this current President, promised solemnly to not let such a situation occur again.

At this late stage, a few days before the 2023 Goodwill Swimming Championship commences in Jamaica, on August 18, 2023, it is very disheartening to learn, that GASA has no money to even pay for a Coach to travel with a reduced team of swimmers.

Several weeks ago, the President and Vice President, Administration of GASA met with the parents of the selected swimmers at the National Aquatic Centre. The President of GASA promised that he will seek to utilise a portion of the Olympic Aquatic Support Programme (OASP) funds, which World Aquatics pledged to GASA, for swimmer development from grassroots to elite levels. Even though he said, several weeks ago, that he will seek to have an emergency meeting of GASA to discuss the use of a portion of the OASP funds, he confessed that he has not presented a proposal to the GASA Council as yet, because he had no figures. The figures he speaks about have been shared several times with him.

He also promised that GASA would seek additional funding from the Government of Guyana, the Guyana Olympic Association and the private sector. Parents are aware also and have accepted that they needed to make a contribution to their children participating in the Goodwill Swimming Championship.

The President of GASA has recently informed us that he has received no funding from anyone and that GASA has no money either to assist the Goodwill Team. Given the situation with lack of funding, several parents committed to fully funding their children’s participation. This meant that most of the team had to withdraw due to lack of funding.

Even with this approach, GASA at the very last moment, said they had no money to pay for the Coach to travel with the reduced team to Jamaica.

Despite valiant efforts from parents, GASA has provided very little support to me as Team Manager of Guyana’s 2023 Goodwill Swimming Championship Team. The Guyana Amateur Swimming Association seems unconcerned that Guyana, as a founding member of the Goodwill Swimming Championship, missed the championship in 2022, for no good reason, that its desire to host the Goodwill Swimming Championship in 2025 will suffer a huge setback if no proposal is presented to the congress of the Goodwill Swimming Championship in Jamaica on August 17, 2023, that the young swimmers have been training very hard for several months with the expectation of participating in this swimming championship, that there are several medal contenders in the team and that this seeming callous treatment of young swimmers may have a negative impact on their (and other young swimmers) further engagement in this vital core sport/discipline.

At this stage, I am unaware if GASA has made a decision or has communicated anything further to the Aquatic Sports Association of Jamaica, regarding Guyana’s participation in the 27th Edition of the Goodwill Swimming Championship, August 18-20, 2023, Jamaica.

Mrs. Atanica Vieira

Team Manager

Guyana’s 2023 Goodwill Swimming Championship Team

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