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Edghill grateful for Olympic Qualification
FLASHBACK! Guyana’s Chelsea Edghill in action during her women’s table tennis singles preliminary round match against Fiji’s Sally Yee at the 2020 Summer Olympics, in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo: AP)
By Rawle Toney
Kaieteur Sports – Chelsea Edghill’s ‘Wild Card’ selection for the Paris Olympics came as a surprise to the country’s highest-ranked table tennis player, but she’s grateful for the opportunity to compete for the second time at the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) flagship event.
The Olympics run from July 26 to August 10 and are considered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for many athletes, but for Edghill, this will be her second experience.
Edghill narrowly missed out on qualifying during her Olympic quest in a seven-game thriller against Estella Crespo of Cuba at the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Americas Pan American qualification event, held from May 14-18 in Lima, Peru.
However, the IOC and the ITTF offered Edghill the only female Tripartite Commission Invitation spot, making her the only player from the English-speaking Caribbean to qualify for the Paris Olympic Games.
“I’m happy to qualify for the Olympics; it was really unexpected…given the kind of years that I’ve had leading up to the Olympics, it was really unexpected, but overall I’m very grateful and still humble for the opportunity to represent Guyana at the Olympics,” an elated Edghill stated.
At the Tokyo Olympics, Chelsea Edghill became the first Guyanese and the only female player from the English-speaking region to qualify for the Olympics since table tennis was added to the list of disciplines in 1988.
Edghill had an impressive showing at the Tokyo Games, captivating Guyana and the Caribbean region when she defeated two-time Olympian Sally Yee of Fiji 4-1 (11-5, 4-11, 11-3, 11-6, 11-8) in a commanding debut performance in the preliminary round.
She progressed to the main draw but lost to South Korea’s Shin Yu-bin in the Women’s Singles at the Tokyo Olympic Games, with scores of 11-7, 11-8, 11-7, 12-10.
Meanwhile, in a release from the Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA), it was noted that Shamar Britton was also a key candidate for a wild card spot, given his performances in international competition during the qualification period from June 2023 to June 2024.
However, he was unable to attend the qualification events due to clashes with the Olympic qualification event and final year exams at the Hugh Wooding School of Law, which was a key requirement for being considered for selection for wild card spots.
“The key focus is on ensuring that Chelsea continues to get the requisite preparation to face the challenge ahead. Part of this process has been a program with coach Yasel of Cuba in Guyana,” the GTTA said.
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