Godfrey Samuels and Loraine Solomon will lead the male and female teams which will participate in the World Council of Dominoes Federation (WCDF) which will take place in Barbados.
The Guyana team under manager Gladstone George will depart Guyana in two batches today and tomorrow ahead of the opening action on Friday.
Some 13 countries including Guyana will participate in the tournament which is being hosted by the National Domino Whist & Hearts Clubs’ Association.
The countries are Puerto Rico, U.S.A, Canada, St. Eustatius, St. Lucia, Antigua, Guyana, Dominica, Anguilla, St. Vincent, Grenada St. Kitts and Barbados.
George, in an interview with Stabroek Sport, said he has lofty expectations for both the male and female teams.
According to George this optimism was derived from the six weeks of intense training that the players went through.
The Guyana players will compete in several categories including the three hand males and females, four hand males and females, mixed four hand and the individual king and queen competitions.
Guyana will be defending the queen dominoes title following Bridget Madhoo’s triumph at the 2012 championships.
George said Madhoo, who is in the United States of America will be coming to defend her crown.
“We are going to retain the queen’s crown and can win in the other categories,” George opined adding that though the Bajans are strong contenders in the four hand category, Guyana can emerge victors.
Apart from performances at several tournaments, the manager said the criteria for selection comprised discipline, attendance, punctuality and knowledge of the game.
Meanwhile, Colin Stuart, former West Indies cricketer spoke to the participants on Friday at the conclusion of their training session. Stuart focused on the code of conduct which seeks to explain rules, coordination and behavioural patterns while prominent legal practitioner Emily Dodson came in for high praise from the team officials and players for her assistance during the team’s preparation.
Male team (from) Gilbert Mendonca, Godfrey Samuels, Rawle Peters, Errol Seymour, Herbert Wright, Martin Permaul, Kurt Caesar and Kevin Boston.
Female team (from) Lorraine Rodney, Yonette Christmas, Valerie Fortune, Diane Telford, Jillian Hyman, Nancy Tanner, Denise Griffith, Claire Benjamin, Rita Scarder, Sheron Jerome, Sandra Welch and Faye Joseph.
