The Guyana Lawn Tennis Association (GLTA) and P and P Insurance Brokers are hosting their annual Summer Camp from Monday in keeping with their aim to encourage more youth to participate in sport.

Tournament organiser and GLTA coach Shelly Daly-Ramdyhan

Since 2005, Bish Panday, proprietor of P and P Insurance Brokers has continued to fulfil his commitment to provide healthy lifestyles and encourage discipline in children through sport.

The annual event is hosted for two weeks over the school holiday. Last year more than 100 children attended the camp. Tennis coach Shelly Daly-Ramdyhan said the youngest player they have had was a five-year-old girl who after three years of participating in the Camp is now one of the most promising juniors.

The sessions are quite vigorous; lasting a total of two hours, between 8 am and 2 pm. Each individual is put into a category according to ability for their own comfort and to make it easier for a coach to distinguish strengths and weaknesses in a player. The GLTA hosts the tennis camp and primary school programmes to give more children the opportunity to participate and learn about the sport. More importantly, it also gives coaches an opportunity to spot potential talent for further development and to encourage the young players to take the sport seriously.

Daly-Ramdyhan who is the organizer of the Camp and the GLTA coach said she hopes for better weather this year as conditions during the last camp affected the flow of scheduled games. The Banks DIH Tournament had been scheduled for August but heavy rainfall has forced organisers to shift it to an undisclosed date in September.