Almond Street, Queenstown was yesterday officially renamed Lance Gibbs Street in honour of Lancelot Richard Gibbs, one of the most successful bowlers in the history of West Indies Cricket.
Many turned up at the Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) in Queenstown to honour this Guyanese legend.
The ceremony paved the way for the opening of DCC’s Hall of Fame Museum, which highlights great cricketers in Guyana placing special emphasis on those who played for that club and the Legends Village.
The Legends Village, which is in honour and celebration of all Guyanese cricketers, will run for 13 days and it is expected that each night one of Guyana’s legends will be present to sign autographs and to give endorsements if necessary. At the village there will also be art and craft booths, Guyanese dishes and cultural performances.
Among those who played for DCC are Gibbs, former West Indies captain Clive Lloyd, Roger Harper and Roy Fredericks.
After receiving the signed proclamation from Deputy Mayor of Georgetown Robert Williams, Gibbs told the
gathering that he was deeply honoured to have Almond Street renamed after him. He said he hopes this can be a motivation to young cricketers as well as to academics of Guyana.
Gibbs, a spin bowler, took 309 wickets in test cricket and held that record from 1958 to 1976. He is the second player to pass the 300-wicket mark in Test cricket. However, he was the first spin bowler to have achieved this.
DCC’s President Kirk Douglas said that a few months ago the idea to have a photographic museum to highlight the West Indian, Guyanese and the club’s legends was conceived.
“We believed that their contribution to the cricket world would have been of such tremendous value that they should be honoured. This evening is just a start of what will be continuous events of recognizing our legends,” he said.
Following the ceremony, the plaque and a street sign at the corner of Almond and Peter Rose streets were unveiled.
These unveilings were followed by a tour of the DCC Museum.
The club also presented plaques to four legends: Lance Gibbs, Roger Harper, Clive Lloyd and a relative of the late Roy Fredericks.
Frederick’s plaque was collected by his wife and Lloyd will receive his when he arrives in Guyana in two days.
Debita Harripersaud also presented Gibbs with a balata cricket ball.
Among those present at the ceremony were officials from the Ireland and Sri Lanka cricket teams and Prime Minister Samuel Hinds.
