The seventh staging of the annual Diamond Mineral Water International Indoor Hockey Competition was officially launched Thursday at the Guyana Cricket Club (GCC) pavilion.

The tournament will get underway on December 2 at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall and end on December 5.
The tournament which is organized by the Guyana Hockey Board and has a budget of $3.5 million,   will feature teams from the United States, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados.

At Thursday’s launch, Digicel announced that it will partner with the GHB as the ‘silver sponsor’ for the event.
Digicel Public Relations Officer (PRO) Shonnet Moore said in her opening remarks: “This is Digicel’s first year partnering with the Guyana Hockey Board for the Diamond Mineral Water Tournament. However, it is not our first time partnering with the board.”

She assured that the company will be looking forward to supporting the board in whatever way it can while also expecting an exciting tournament.

Marketing Director of DDL, Sharda Veeren-Chand was also present at the briefing and said that, “Demerara Distillers Limited is one of Guyana’s largest beverage distributors and we believe in supporting sports since it gives young people useful engagements with their time.”

The marketing director also said that DDL had set a long term commitment with the GHB and was looking forward to the partnership  way into the future.

Ansa McAl, the GHB’s other major sponsor for the tournament, was  represented at the launching by their PRO Darshne Yussuf who disclosed that her company continues to support the tournament because of the positive response it has received from the public over the years.

She added that Ansa McAl, through its Carib Beer brand, was dedicated to promoting and supporting the GHB.
GHB President Philip Fernandes thanked the sponsors for their support in getting the tournament up and running.
Fernandes added that apart from the three main sponsors, DDL, Ansa McAl and Digicel, there were  other smaller sponsors who help by taking  care of the minor issues to ensure that the tournament goes according to plan.