Guyana chronicle sports supplement 09 02 2017

CHRONICLE SPORTS EXTRA Saturday, September 2, 2017

Dreams of playing for FC Barcelona - Martin ‘Messi’ King

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CHRONICLE SPORTS EXTRA Saturday, September 2, 2017

Dreams of playing for FC Barcelona - Martin ‘Messi’ King

By Rawle Toney LIONEL Messi is his ‘idol’ and 13-year-old Martin King has dreams of one day walking in the footsteps of the player many believe is the best, or at least one of the best to ever grace the sport of football.

“I started playing when I was two years old,” said Martin who recently returned to Guyana following a stint at Barcelona’s Camp Nou – the home of FC Barcelona.

King won a Milo Skill Challenge and joined other players from around the world who were given a chance to train in one of Spain’s most famous and populated cities.

“It was an amazing feeling to train in Barcelona. I mean, that’s where I want to play football as a professional,” said the bubbly teenager.

Just like his football idol Messi, Martin doesn’t look his age and some defenders learn the hard way to ‘not judge the book by its cover’.

Some pundits say he reminds them of a young Gregory ‘Jackie Chan’ Richardson; short, witty, skilful and very deadly with the ball.

Richardson, 35, is touted by many as one of the best player of his ‘generation’. He was the first Guyanese-born player to feature in the USA’s Major League Soccer (MLS) when he had signed with the Colorado Rapids in 2009.

But for Martin, who said, “Jackie Chan is a great player. I saw him play and he’s one of the best. But, honestly, I want to be like Messi.

That’s my favourite player and one day I want to play at Barcelona just like him.”

PLAYING FOR BARCELONA King broke into prominence during the Petra Organisation’s COURTS Pee Wee Schools Football tournament where he featured

for Enterprise Primary.

He was a tournament favourite, though his school didn’t win, but made it to the final. It was his style that grabbed spectators’ attention and as word spread about the player from Enterprise Primary, who seemed a ‘cut above’ his peers, Banks DIH’s Thirst Park ground was filled on Sundays as persons flood the venue to catch a glimpse of the little magician.

‘Messi’ as he is more popularly known, was also the outstanding player for his Fruta Conquerors Club, where he pledged his allegiance, but also made it clear that his ultimate goal

is to reach the Capital of Catalonia.

“My goal is to be the best player at Fruta Conquerors and Guyana. But honestly, my dream is to play for Barcelona, the best club in the world. Messi is my favourite player, I try to do everything like him, so I train hard, try to do good at school, so one day, I will be able to be just like him and do my mother and family proud.”

He continued: “Yes, I would love to play for Guyana. Everyone would be glad to play for Guyana, but for me, I want to reach Barcelona, that’s my dream – to play at Barca.”

Asked about his stint at the club and joining other players from the rest of the world, Martin said, “It was great, like a dream come true for me. We didn’t get to meet the players, but we trained where they trained and did everything just like them. We had some great sessions. I wasn’t nervous you know, I just did my thing and the coaches saw me and were happy. I told them that I’m from Guyana and plenty children like me could play good football.”

HOW IT ALL STARTED Martin’s mother told Chronicle Sport that her son did everything with his

Martin ‘Messi’ King

Martin ‘Messi’ King shows off some of his skills in this Delona Williams photo.

feet since he learnt to walk.

“If you tell him to pick up something from the floor, he used to kick it. He goes to the shop; he kicks everything he saw on the road.

He’s always with a ball and his older brother just decided to let him start playing football.”

“He joined Fruta Conquerors Football Club and that’s it; everything for Martin is about football. After school, he would go straight to training at the Tucville ground and then he would go straight home,” she said.

The woman said that she’s proud of him, especially given the fact that despite his spending plenty time playing football; he still finds time to do assignments and focus on his education.

“I don’t have any problems with Martin at all.

He comes home, does his school work; go to school on time, train and do whatever you tell him to do. He’s a pleasant child. That boy’s life is all about football; everything for Martin is about football, said Martin’s mother.

SUPPORT According to her, she’s grateful for the support of family in helping to get him the proper playing gear. She told Chronicle Sport “football shoes are not a problem for Martin. He gets a set.

Only the other day I told him take the old ones and the ones that can’t fit anymore and give them away. I know plenty children would love to have them. They’re in good condition but just got a little close for him.”

Even Martin was thankful for the support, stating, “Well, my stepfather would help me a lot, and then my uncle and other family and so on; they would give me stuff.”

For what it’s worth, Martin’s mother believes that her son has a gift and she encourages him to play the game he loves and said that she’s willing to continue supporting him.

As for Martin, he intends to stay committed to the game and do all the right things that will hopefully one day see him living in Spain.

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CHRONICLE SPORTS EXTRA Saturday, September 2, 2017

Sachia Vickery - Carrying the ‘Golden Arrow Head’ for a tennis ‘joy ride’ B y R a w l e To n e y

Sachia Vickery, despite not being born in Guyana, would let the world know that her heart belongs to the homeland of her parents Rawle Vickery and Paula Liverpool, as she showed many that she belongs in tennis and isn’t going anywhere.

from Kwakwani, while her father is from Christianburg, Wismar and known for his exploits on the football pitch.

This year ’s US Open appearance was her second, having also featured at the Australian Open, the French Open (2016) and Wimbledon (2015).

na Lučić-Baroni; a 28 yearold Croatian who had once reached the semi-finals of Wimbledon.

Vickery won the match against Baroni 6 – 4, 6 – 4 to reach the (U.S. Open) second round where she played Julia Glushko of Israel and went down 5 – 7, 3 – 6.

It was at the U.S. Open,

Sachia Vickery took the tiny South American country to the U.S. Open.

Sachia stands at 5′ 4″ (163 cm), weighing 145 lbs (66 kg) and is now ranked 128 by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), with her highest being 108.

“Guyana is where my whole family is from and

Chronicle Sport on a short visit to Guyana in 2015.

“I will always represent Guyana because it’s a reminder of all the struggles and things my mother did to help me to where I am today, so no, I wasn’t born in Guyana but I feel like I owe a lot to the country because of my mother,” Vickery said.

“The thing is, I don’t think Guyana was successful in getting people to play Tennis as much, so I know they would look up to me and it’s nice getting support from them as well. I always receive a lot of support from the Guyanese community. I get tons of messages from them and a few have come to

Sachia Vickery at the 2017 US Open Sachia Vickery at the 2013 US Open Vickery missed, by one point, a chance to play Maria Sharapova at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in the third round of the US Open, after losing to 18-year-old Sofia Kenin.

Playing on Court 10 at the Flushing Meadows facility, Vickery went down 3-6 in the first set, but rebounded to win the second 6-4.

A series of errors coupled with some strong plays

by Kenin, saw Vickery battling hard to come back.

H o w e v e r, w h e n t h e dust was settled it was the 18-year-old Kenin who came out on top in the third set 7-6 to win the ‘humdinger’ of a match.

It was a truly phenomenal performance by the 22-year-old who had an overwhelming support by the Caribbean community both on and off the court at the US Open this year, especially given the fact that she blew away everyone that stood in her way, starting from the qualifiers.

“She’ll be back! She’s a trooper!” said her mother Paula Liverpool. Both of Sachia’s parents are from Region 10; her mother is

In 2013, Guyanese, just like the rest of the world, zeroed in on a then 18-yearold Sasha Vickery, playing at her first Grand Slam – the U.S. Open.

Her opponent was Mirja-

where the eyes of millions watching around the world, noticed her distinct rich yellow gold earrings of a miniature map of Guyana and her wristbands of the Golden Arrow Head.

I consider myself mostly Guyanese though I was born in America. I feel like it’s my home” the diminutive but powerful Vickery said with a wide smile during her exclusive interview with

Vickery would visit Guyana to get some ‘down time’ from the sport and would use it to interact with family and share her knowledge of the game to aspiring Guyanese Tennis players.

Sachia Vickery

see me play at Wimbledon so I love the support,” Vickery highlighted.

Indeed, not much African American women play the sport of Tennis, much less being ranked in the world and Vickery told Chronicle Sport that, “We (black Tennis players) are representing a race; young black people who look up to us. Every time I step on the court, I tell myself that I’m not only playing for me, but for other young African American girls who would love to play but don’t have that support system to back them or to take them to the next level to be a pro. It’s hard, but it also keeps me focused because you’re playing for more than just that prize money.”

Serena Williams and Martina Hingis are her favourite players but Vickery pointed out, “I don’t try to emulate anyone because everyone have their own style of play, but I really try to do the best I can with the game that I have because I’m a lot different from a lot of people on the tour. Most people are bigger than me and I always have to play extra hard.”

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CHRONICLE SPORTS EXTRA Saturday, September 2, 2017

How West Indies batsman and Headingley record-breaker Shai Hope was schooled in East Sussex

Alan Wells, the school’s director of cricket, sensed he was a natural leader.

Shai Hope celebrates after reaching his century in the second Test ONE Englishman was left beaming with pride when Shai Hope’s devotion to crease occupation secured a historic Test match victory and a place in the first-class record books.

For Hope’s historic Headingley hundreds reminded Alan Wells, who had the most fleeting of associations with Test cricket himself in the mid-90s, of an early episode in their relationship at Bede’s, an independent school nestled in the countryside of East Sussex.

One that confirmed his pupil was at odds with both his 16 years and the Twenty20 generation into which he was born, as a devoted disciple of the art of ‘batsmanship’ rather than a Bajan braggadocio. Beneath the Cantona collars lurked a serious talent.

“His approach to practice was exemplary. I remember stopping him before he went into a net once and asking him what his objective was for that session. He told me it was the same as every other time he walked in. I said: “What’s that?”

His answer: “I never want to get out”.’

The high price the 23-year-old placed on his wicket at Leeds was integral to West Indies’ win and, strikingly, the first occurrence of a player celebrating three figures twice in

a match since first-class cricket was first played there in 1890.

It was Hope’s coming of age as an international player, a journey accelerated by his time as a sixth form boarder at Bede’s.

Since 2010, Wells, the school’s director of cricket, has regularly headed out to Bridgetown to hand-pick a scholar for a programme jointly funded with the Barbados Cricket Association. Hope was his first draft.

“What stood out about Shai? His passion for the game - it’s in his blood with his brother Kyle and father Ian - his determination to improve, and after watching him practise I knew he would be willing to work really hard, to sacrifice a lot to fulfil his potential.”

Bede’s has a rich cricket pedigree. Their Under-15 team were crowned national champions this summer. Wells’ eldest son Luke – the Sussex left-hander, who has struck 15 firstclass hundreds – and Middlesex’s England Lions spinner Ollie Rayner are former first XI captains.

Despite being an outsider, Wells identified Hope to follow in their footsteps, and appointed him captain for both his years at the school.

“He was a very mature cricketer and a very natural leader because of his obvious determination to succeed through hard

work. He was therefore a great role model for everyone that came into contact with him,” Wells said.

“We will never forget him for the wonderful young man he was but also the lasting legacy he has left. In Sussex schools cricket people still talk about Shai and some of the innings he played against Eastbourne College and Ardingly College. The people that witnessed them have not forgotten.”

Particularly one against Ardingly in which he struck 178 not out and took Abi Sakande, an England Under-19 at the time and now on the Sussex staff, apart.

“Shai didn’t think he was bowling fast enough at him, so he stood about two metres down the pitch so it would come on a bit quicker, and he just kept smacking him into the trees for six – it was just extraordinary,” Wells recalls.

The fact that the pair remain in close contact is “100% a reflection on him as a character” according to Wells: “He still sends me birthday wishes and Christmas greetings, stuff like that. I am so proud of him and his achievements.”

Yesterday morning’s text message reflected fatigue.

Wells’ response was to remind his former pupil of the offer made at the start of West Indies’ tour – a ticket with his name on it for the series finale at Lord’s.

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CHRONICLE SPORTS EXTRA Saturday, September 2, 2017

Five great Test run-chases ENGLAND V WEST INDIES, LORD’S 1984 Spare a thought for poor Joe Root. A young captain, eager to showcase a positive attitude with his talented but flawed Test team, his declaration, late on the fourth evening, setting West Indies 322 to win, should by right have been rewarded with a shot at a series-winning victory.

PAKISTAN V ENGLAND, KARACHI 2000-01 The light was fading fast as Hope and Blackwood swung for glory at Headingley, but it was a midsummer night’s dream, compared to the stygian gloom at the National Stadium in Karachi in the dying minutes of England’s tour of Pakistan in 2000-01. Two stultifying draws at Lahore and Faisala-

ham Thorpe scampered 64 not out, the winning runs coming with an under-edged cut that none of the fielders could see.

WEST INDIES V AUSTRALIA, BARBADOS 1998-99 The obituaries for West Indies cricket have been coming thick and fast since the official end of their days of dominance in 1994-95,

Gill and Warne (soon to be dropped for the decider) were all thwarted.

The winning boundary, a trademark guillotined drive through the covers, prompted arguably the defining celebration of Lara’s career - arms raised, bat in one hand, stump in the other, enveloped by his team-mates as Kensington Oval flooded with jubilation.

grand finale to his matchless career. Morris fell for 182 with victory all but sewn up, but Bradman remained unbowed, on 173, as Neil Harvey cracked the winning boundary off the first ball of his innings.

Little did the onlookers know in that moment of victory, but with 6 996 runs to his name, Bradman would never add to that tally.

Gordon Greenidge on his way to 214*. (Getty Images) It didn’t quite work out as planned, and who knows what the lesson will do for his proactivity in the future; but one man in the Sky commentary box is bound to have more sympathy than most. David Gower had just inherited the captaincy from Bob Willis in the summer of 1984, when he found himself in a position to turn the screw on the mighty West Indies.

bad had proved one thing - if nothing else - that Nasser Hussain’s England would be a tough nut to crack.

But then, in the penultimate innings of the series, Moin Khan’s Pakistan inexplicably lost the plot, folding for 158 to present the opportunity of a lifetime to a team that had spent all tour clinging on.

The target was 176 in 44 overs, and Moin’s go-slow

when Mark Taylor’s Australians came, saw and conquered on a feisty tour of the Caribbean. So, when, four years later, the Aussies rocked up once again in Trinidad and routed the former champions for 51, the knives were out like never before for the skipper Brian Lara, who had just overseen a humiliating 5-0 loss in South Africa.

Lara’s response was sav-

Curtly Ambrose dismisses Mark Ramprakash for a duck. (Getty Images) Ian Botham, with first-innings figures of 8 for 108 and a hard-hitting 81, had starred in a dogged team performance that deserved a shot at glory, but instead they came face to face with a limping Gordon Greenidge, one of the most fearsome beasts in the global game.

With his mobility limited, his psychotic cuts and pulls wouldn’t have been out of place in a Hitchcock movie, as England were hacked down by nine wickets - a chase of 344 achieved in an extraordinary 66.1 overs.

tactics made damn sure that they wouldn’t get a delivery more. The first seven overs before tea were stretched across 40 minutes, and with the sun setting fast, there seemed little chance of a resolution, even with the sub fielder, Matthew Hoggard, roped into sightscreen duties in front of the pavilion.

But with umpire Steve Bucknor unmoved by Moin’s petitions, to take the players off for bad light, Pakistan were hoist by their captain’s petard. Graeme Hick clubbed 40 and Gra-

age and brilliant, a stunning 213 in Jamaica to set up a 10-wicket win, but he was only getting started. What followed, in Barbados, was arguably the most glorious innings of his life - a stroke-perfect 153 not out, in a total of 311 for 9, as he hunted down a daunting total with dead-eyed drives and calm manipulation of the tail.

Courtney Walsh, as inept as a batsman as he was great as a bowler, survived five deliveries at the death as McGrath, Gillespie, Mac-

land the previous summer to slump to the bottom of the Test rankings, and in Nasser Hussain and Duncan Fletcher, they were in the early months of a partnership that would transform the team forever. But they needed results, and when they were stuffed by an innings in the first Test at Edgbaston, the same old script was being written.

Brian Lara celebrates the victory after scoring an unbeaten 153. (Getty Images) ENGLAND V AUSTRALIA, HEADINGLEY 1948 It’s rare for a fourth-innings chase of 322 not to be a new ground record for a run-chase, but equally, it is a measure of West Indies’ triumph that, instead of toppling one of the iconic Headingley achievements, Hope and Brathwaite will now forever be mentioned in the same breath as two titans, Don Bradman and Arthur Morris.

ENGLAND V WEST INDIES, LORD’S, 2000 Run-chases come in all shapes and sizes, but the general rule of thumb is that the fewer runs to tick off, the easier the task at hand. That, however, ignores all manner of extenuating circumstances - pitch conditions, stature of opposition, weight of history … or, just occasionally, all three, as England discovered in an

In Courtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose, they were up against the proudest defenders of West Indies’ faith, and when the pair shared four first-innings wickets, England had surrendered a first-innings lead of 133, and with it, surely the series.

But then, the miracle - West Indies 54 all out in their second innings, and a shot at redemption. Michael Atherton

Don Bradman congratulates Arthur Morris on reaching his century. (PA Photos) Like Root on Monday evening, Norman Yardley had few reasons to doubt the wisdom of his declaration, early on the fifth day, as Australia were set a daunting 404.

Bradman, a month shy of his 40th birthday, remained formidable, of course, but more vulnerable than in his pomp - he’d not added to his 28 Test hundreds since the first innings of the series. But now, in a rollicking stand of 301 in just 217 minutes, he made up for lost time in a thrilling

excruciatingly thrilling finale at Lord’s.

When Dominic Cork, as manic as Jermaine Blackwood, but cool and calculated to boot, crashed England to their target of 191 with just two wickets standing, he sealed a win that arguably rivals Edgbaston 2005 as his country’s most important win in the past two decades.

The context was thus: England hadn’t beaten West Indies, home or away, since 1968. They had just lost to New Zea-

and the rookie Michael Vaughan matched each other, stroke for stroke, flinch for flinch, in a pair of vital 40s, as West Indies were ultimately let down by their lack of back-up bowlers.

Walsh claimed 6 for 74, Ambrose grudgingly conceded 22 runs in as many overs, but Franklyn Rose and Reon King were not fit to succeed the kings and England went on to win the Wisden Trophy for the first time in 32 years.

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CHRONICLE SPORTS EXTRA Saturday, September 2, 2017

Why are we praising Conor McGregor for losing to Floyd Mayweather?

LISTEN to people argue about the sport (and all fight fans ever do is argue) and you’ll inevitably hear that accusation. It’s the standard way of dismissing someone who doesn’t agree with you about some piece of boxing arcana, but it’s also so commonly thrown around because two men beating each other up with their fists can look simple and boxing is anything but.

So it’s my turn: It’s still strange to see how many people don’t seem to get what they watched last Saturday night.

Conor McGregor deserves a lot of credit for landing this fight, taking his preparations seriously and committing to trying to win, given his limited resources in boxing skill and experience. What he shouldn’t be given credit for is his performance - for “lasting” 10 rounds with a historically elite fighter (who is no longer elite).

The truth is McGregor was merely a prop in a perfectly executed piece of theatre. He didn’t survive 10 rounds with Floyd Mayweather; he was carried for 10 rounds by Mayweather. Until Mayweather had enough and stopped the fight.

Let’s start with a basic observation. It appears McGregor did not learn much about boxing during his training camp. He did not learn how to throw a punch.

He doesn’t know how to start the motion in his legs and hips and transfer his bodyweight through the punch.

He doesn’t have even average power in the ring. He also did not have any grasp of the basic rules.

It was quite shocking to hear McGregor admit in the post-fight press conference that he was “using valuable energy here to get to this man’s back and we’re just being re-set.” Was he under the impression that he could

Conor McGregor (left) after catching a punch to the face during his fight with Floyd Mayweather. throw punches to an opponent’s back?

Not to mention all the holding of the head and rabbit-punching. It makes one wonder what the point was to have referee Joe Cortez attend McGregor’s training camp leading up to the fight.

But the ruse gets pretty obvious when one observes the simple things Floyd chose not to do.

For one, after deciding he wanted to spend the fight in McGregor’s chest, Mayweather rarely bothered try-

ing the elementary things boxers do to get inside.

Namely, regularly jabbing, feinting and slipping. Simply walking forward with your hands up and your chin tucked while hardly throwing, as Mayweather did is not how boxers close down distance.

Secondly, Mayweather didn’t cut off the ring.

Fighters get aggressively offensive for a few reasons: They realise their opponents need time and space to work and they want to deny that

Floyd Mayweather put on his own entertainment in the ring as he defeated UFC sensation Conor

time and space. They realise their opponents are tiring and looking for ways to rest and they want to deny opportunities for rest. Or, they realise their opponents don’t have enough power to hurt them and so they want to get in range to get off their cbecause they’re not worried about being hit.

All were true in Mayweather’s case. He indeed walked McGregor down, but he did it in a way that was incredibly amateurish and inefficient. He literally

followed McGregor around the ring in a circle. That’s not how you apply pressure.

You pursue at angles, move to where your opponent is going to be - cut off the ring in order to trap your target.

Mayweather merely trailed after McGregor, growing increasingly offensive as McGregor grew fatigued.

In other words, to believe what you were seeing is to believe Floyd all of a sudden no longer knew the basics of boxing.

Now, it’s true that there

were obvious signs of slippage in Mayweather. His punches weren’t as sharp or accurate as we’ve come to expect. Combine that fact with Mayweather walking forward in a straight line, and standing flat-footed as McGregor got off his weak, floppy, slapping punches, and you could, if you’re naïve, get the impression that you were watching a contest.

And the misinformation campaign began during the fight itself, as various TV and online commentary started expressing their admiration for McGregor’s ability.

By the next day, a delusional consensus had been formed. Whether the majority of the commentary truly didn’t understand what they had witnessed or felt in the immediate aftermath of the fight that the bout needed to be mythologised so as not to offend the probable record-breaking PPV audience is unclear.

McGregor himself can be forgiven for the hilarious assertion that he was out-boxing Mayweather early. With Floyd throwing 28 total punches in the first 3 rounds according to CompuBox, it might have felt that way to him. More bizarre was his assertion that he thought he hurt Floyd during the fight.

When? And with what? The much-talked-about uppercut that McGregor landed in round one is illustrative. It was well-timed and landed clean - and had precisely zero effect on Mayweather.

None of this should make anyone upset. Together, the two men put on a performance that left the audience satisfied. But let’s not pretend we got a better fight than we expected, there was no fight. What the two men delivered, or rather, what Mayweather was able to engineer was the entertaining show he had promised all along.

(ESPN)

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CHRONICLE SPORTS EXTRA Saturday, September 2, 2017

Coming into his own as a versatile swimmer – Daniel Scott S E V E N TEEN-YEAR-OLD Daniel Scott has really been coming into his own as a national swimmer these past few months, and he hopes to one day represent Guyana on the International scene.

Scott recently returned from the Inter Guiana Games, where he was Guyana’s top performing swimmer, with three silver and a bronze medals, being his first individual medals at that meet, and it was quite the accomplishment for the young swimmer.

to date at that regional event. Swimming in the boys’ 15 – 17 category Scott ended with one silver and two bronze medals at this event.

His medals are a reflection of just how much Scott has been improving as a very versatile swimmer, performing well in all of the strokes, though he does have an inclination more towards the breaststroke events.

Scott is also beginning to exploit his aptitude for the longer distance races, branching out more into

ing Guyana when he was eight years old.

It was as a baby that Scott’s parents were advised to get him into swimming for medical reasons, since he suffered from lung and breathing problems.

They enrolled him in a “Learn to Swim” class at the Dorado Speed Swim Club, headed by Coach Stephanie Fraser. Scott remains a part of the club up to this day.

Fraser said she always saw potential in Scott, but knew that Scott would need to put in a

take a sabbatical from the sport, especially during exam periods.

“It gets really hard because lessons would go really late. But by the grace of God, I was able Guyana’s Daniel Scott won silver in the boys 200m freestyle after a tough fight against Suriname’s Enrico Molly. Guyana’s Antonio Rodrigues was third (Delano Williams photo) That success was the continuation of what has been an improved season for Scott, who was also one of only two swimmers, who represented Guyana at the Commonwealth Youth Games in July.

Though he failed to medal at that international event, Scott was still able to show improvement, clocking new personal best times in all of his events.

Earlier this month, he performed at the Goodwill Swim Meet, where he also saw his best display

open water swimming.

Being one of two swimmers that were the first ever Guyanese to participate at the CARIFTA Open Water Swim.

Open water swim is an area that Scott has been showing a lot of potential in, and his coach has been looking to capitalize on that and propel him where he is best suited.

Starting out in swimming since he was only two-years-old, Scott has always showed great potential at the local level, and first began represent-

lot of work if he was ever to get to his full potential.

“It was really only lately that he has been showing a lot of promise in the sprint events. He has shown potential as a distance swimmer; he has more of this distance technique. He’s very good at swimming open water events,” Coach Fraser said.

However with his academics demands, things would at times become too demanding for the student-athlete and in several cases Scott would find himself needing to

to,” the St Stanislaus College Student Scott said.

Scott also dabbled a little in the sport of football, but when it all came down to it, swimming was where

he thought he belonged.

Writing his Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations last year, Scott also took a break from the sport, and it was only last year August that he again returned.

Despite his breaks, whenever he returns, Scott is always dedicated in getting himself back on track, to being the best swimmer that he can be.

“He always pushed himself hard in the sport,” said Scott’s mom, Aritha, who observes how disciplined he can be.

“He had gained a lot of weight at one point so he realized what he had to do, so he started to go online and with that he lost the weight and he was doing research, and he would be doing exercises, and really start to propel himself in the sport.”

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CHRONICLE SPORTS EXTRA Saturday, September 2, 2017

SCENES FROM IGG 2017- Delano IN SURINAME Williams Photos