By Rawle Toney
The Guyana Teachers Union (GTU) says it has nullified the results of this years’ National Schools Track and Field, Cycling and Swimming Championships.
This information was conveyed to Stabroek Sports by president of the GTU Colwyn King in an interview yesterday.
King described the championships, which were held at the Mackenzie Sports Club ground in Linden as a “catastrophe.”
It’s not fair! Athletes from Districts 11, 12, 13, 14 and 5 protesting outside of the Guyana Teachers Union (GTU) yesterday. (Lawrence Fanfare Photo)
Yesterday some representatives of districts 11, 12, 13, 14 and five protested outside of the GTU office on Woolford Avenue charging among other things that the officials did not discharge their duties in a fair and transparent manner.
They also claimed that the host district benefited from preferential treatment.
One parent Diallo Jamaal Shabazz, who had two children taking part of the championship representing districts 11 and 12, said that he witnessed first hand how the athletes were treated and was calling on the GTU to disband those officials.
He alleged that athletes mainly from districts located in Georgetown complained that although they won events they were demoted to a lower position while the District 10 athletes were moved up.
King also claimed that he was physically assaulted by a woman in front of the officials and senior members of the GTU upstairs of the Mackenzie Sports Club.
“I was sitting in a chair talking to some of the officials, while they were telling me that Linden had won and that they should hand out the trophy, but I was trying to tell them of the calls made by some of the districts but some became very angry and started to use profanity, some even saying bust he (King) head, and then someone said to throw him outside and a woman came up to me and slapped me a few times in my head and pushed me out of the chair, ” King recounted.
He added that there was also a threat for him to hand over the trophy failing which no one would have been allowed to leave the ground.
“After I heard that, there is nothing I could have done but to hand over the trophy without no closing ceremony or anything so that the athletes and officials from the other districts could have left the venue safely. It was only then that they were allowed to leave through the side entrance of the ground,” King said.
Based on a meeting that was held by the top brass of the GTU, they concluded that the games would go down as null and void and the officials who were guilty of irregular behavior would be disciplined.
null and void? just like that? for no significant reason? sooo easy for the gtu to say after the sacrifice and hard work of all the young athletes. What disrespect to the young participants. What a stinking shame.
They gotta done with these old days nonsense……….cheaters!!
The nullification of the results of this years’ National Schools Track and Field, Cycling and Swimming Championships sponsored by the GTU is symptomatic of the poor leadership of that union under Mr. King.
It is indeed a sad state of affair that the body which is supposed to be a representative of the intelligencia , just cannot get any thing right.
What a shame! Wonder if the police were off duty. Such nonsense should be avoided at all cost and those responsible for the chaos should be disciplined and even be charged for disorderly behaviour. It was the children’s sports and not “an adult thing”. I wonder how many athletes were cheated. There seems to be a bundle of confusion with GTU.
Many promising “Usain Bolts” were debarred from participating at the national level because those selecting athletes in the Corentyne District wanted to cut cost and to promote athletes of their choice. My understanding is that if you attained FIRST PLACE(1 st ) in your event at the Inter Branch/Zone level you are eligible for Nationals. Educators kill the zeal/ enthusiasm in children when they reached that tape FIRST only to be told later, “You cannot go to Nationals because we have an athlete who would do all the events”. How could another athlete who was defeated be qualified to perform in the place of an athlete who was FIRST?
The mere idea of going to nationals is a moment of joy, pride and accomplish for young Guyanese.
GTU please get your acts together. No wonder ” teacher exodus” continues to plague Guyana.
Don’t ever take the sport to linden again
Stories have two sides, get to know the other side before you speak.
The situation of GTU and the National Championship is not something new. This has been going on for years. There are some within the GTU that do not have the students welfare at heartand seek out there own benefits. I, as an official had issues with them about the treatment of our athletes.at these events.
I have long told them that the time will come when parents would stand up to them and point out their weaknesses.
There were changes but are still more of the same. It is getting worse by the year.
Wonder if the GTU took into consideration some of the sacrifices that these young athletes made. I know that those athletes from the hinterland have to make a lot of sacrifices by travelling hundreds of miles, poor food and accomodation etc to participate. I wonder how those athletes who made so much sacrifices to participate would feel about the nullification of the champioships.
Come on GTU, you have to be blamed!!!
This is ridiculous, someone in authority needs to intrevene, Mr King needs to take his exit. Just because the Georgetown teams weren’t in the top spots he called the Championships null and void. What about the tax payers money that the government give to off set this event, he has no regard for that? What about the athletes who worked hard from the other parts of the country, you’re telling them that their work went in vain? Mr King and his tead need to be thrown out. The treatment of athletes in Linden wasn’t different from any other region. I’m from Essequibo and I’ve travelled all over for Nationals and it’s the same old story all the time. Give Jack his jacket, the athletes from District 10 dominated the track. The Georgetown teams were very indiscipline especially District 11, they lack good sportsmanship. When they cheated that samesame district last year District 10 did not behave like that . COME ON MR KING AND OTHERS DON’T LEAN ON ONE SIDE, remember athletes travelled great distances to get there, reward them accordingly, they deserve what is theirs.
I’m a die hard Berbician, I supported my team from beginning to end. I was there for the opening and the ending of the event. Georgetown definitely has a problem with Linden. I don’t know what Mr. King is talking about. He had his people at the gate, at the scoring table and at the finishing line, so tell me how could that team cheat. He saw with his own two eyes and I must admit too that District 10 had a better and stronger team. With all that was reported in the media he said nothing about the coffin District 11 carried in the March Pass, which I think was total disrespect and out of place. They gotta be mad because the same coffin they took to bury District 10 in, they were buried in.Shame on the Georgetown teams!!!!!! They lack discipline from the Managers right down. They are not good leaders. If it was ok for the Managers from GT to behave like that ,then it was ok for the Linden parents to treat Mr. King the way they treated him. I was there, no one slapped him, they expressed their anger verbally. He needs to apologise to the people of Linden.
I agree never to take the championship to Linden. Everytime it’s in Linden there is a big problem. G.T.U needs to be more organized. I remember going to national it was always something I looked forward to, the competition was clean and fair and we didnt have to worry about been cheated by the host district.