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Guyana Cricket Board Press Release

The Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) continues to demonstrate its support for youth and women’s cricket with a timely visit and donation by its President, Mr. Bissoondyal Singh, to the national Under-19 female team, currently encamped at the La Bonne Intention (LBI) facility on the East Coast of Demerara as they prepare to leave for Trinidad and Tobago today.

The team held their encampment at the Essequibo hostel where they were able to focus on skill development as well as physical fitness.

The newly renovated Essequibo hostel is now equipped with a bowling machine (donated by GCB) as well as a covered outdoor net facility, which allows for session during the rainy period.

As the squad prepares to depart for the upcoming Cricket West Indies (CWI) Regional Under-19 Female Tournament, Mr. Singh took the opportunity to engage with the players and coaching staff, delivering words of encouragement and reaffirming the Board’s commitment to their development.

During his visit, he also donated cricket gear to several members of the squad as part of the GCB’s efforts to ensure the players are well-equipped ahead of regional competition.

“This team represents the future of women’s cricket in Guyana,” said Mr. Singh.

“We are proud of the hard work they’ve put in, and the GCB is committed to providing the resources and encouragement they need to succeed. I urge them to play with pride, discipline and unity.”

The GCB extends best wishes to the Under-19 female team as they look to defend the title they won last year, carrying the hopes of a proud cricketing nation. ‎

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The Guyana Boxing Association (GBA) has announced what it describes as a formidable squad to compete at this year’s Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Boxing Championship, scheduled for August 1-3 in St. Lucia.

Leading the six-member team is Abiola Jackman, last year’s Best Elite Female Boxer, who made history by becoming the first Guyanese- male or female- to win gold at the Americas Boxing Confederation (AMBC) Elite Championships.

She will be one of two female boxers representing Guyana, alongside Akeelah Vancooten, a former national representative at the World Junior Championships.

The remainder of the squad features Caribbean standouts Shakquain James, Teevin Wintz, Emanuel Pompey and Joel Williamson, who are all expected to deliver strong performances as they aim to match or surpass Guyana’s showing at last year’s  tournament in St. Lucia.

Top (from left): Shakquain James and Joel Williamson. Bottom (from left): Akeelah Vancooten and Teevin Wintz

In a statement, GBA President Steve Ninvalle stressed the association’s strategic focus on developing young, up-and-coming talent through international exposure.

“We want to ensure that our next generation of boxers are not only well-trained but also well-exposed. Tournaments like the OECS Championships provide another platform for our athletes to gain valuable international experience,” Ninvalle said.

Ninvalle further underscored the GBA’s commitment to creating pathways for promising boxers to showcase their skills on the international stage.

“Our goal is to give the best boxers, and those with real potential, the opportunities they deserve, not just to compete, but to be seen globally,” he added.

At last year’s edition of the OECS Championship, held at the Vigie Sports Complex in Castries, Guyana finished second overall in the Invitational Category, despite fielding a relatively small team of six boxers.

Guyana tallied an impressive 14 points, securing four gold and two silver medals. The much larger Trinidad and Tobago contingent, with 16 boxers, topped the table with 33 points, while Barbados placed third with 13 points.

Among the standouts were Abiola Jackman (Elite) and Ryan Rogers (Bantamweight – Schoolboys), who captured the Best Female Boxer and Best Junior Boxer awards, respectively.

The full 2024 team also included Alesha Jackman (Middleweight- Elite, gold), Shakquain James (Lightweight- Junior, gold), Angelina Rogers (Bantamweight- Junior, silver), and Junior Madray (31-33 kg- Schoolboys, silver).

The team was led by national coach Lennox Daniels, and the late Terrence Poole, MS.

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Despite frequent rain delays and a spirited late fightback from the West Indies, Australia ended day three of the second Test firmly in control, as they built a 254-run lead with three wickets in hand at the National Cricket Stadium in Grenada on Saturday.

Resuming the day at 12-2, the Australians overcame early nerves and a tricky surface to reach 221-7 at stumps, thanks largely to well-constructed half-centuries from Cameron Green and veteran Steven Smith.

Wicketkeeper Alex Carey, on 26, and captain Pat Cummins, on four, will look to push the lead beyond 300 when play resumes at 9:15am local time (8:15am Jamaica time) on day four.

Green, who started the day on six, anchored Australia’s innings with a patient 52 from 123 balls as he batted through difficult spells, especially in the morning session.

In fact, the 26-year-old seemed set for a bigger score but was undone by Shamar Joseph in the 40th over, as he chopped onto his stumps shortly after celebrating his first half-century against the Caribbean side.

Before that, Green lost his overnight partner, Nathan Lyon, for eight, as the nightwatchman chased an outswinger from Alzarri Joseph and was caught by John Campbell at point.

Australia were 28-3 at that point, but West Indies’ hopes of making further inroads were thwarted by Green and Smith.

The two took control and stitched together a vital 93-run partnership that took the sting out of the West Indies’ early burst. After Green’s dismissal, Smith, who mixed caution with aggression, brought up his 43rd Test half-century when he whipped a Shamar Joseph delivery off his legs for four and looked poised for three figures.

However, Justin Greaves, impressive with the ball all day, trapped the 36-year-old danger man in front for 71 with a delivery that jagged in sharply.

Smith reviewed the on-field decision, but it proved futile as the DRS confirmed that South African umpire Adrian Holdstock was on point.

Greaves struck again just two overs later, as he removed Beau Webster for just two to reduce Australia to 181-6, as the West Indies sniffed an opportunity to claw their way back. But the Australians were not done yet.

Carey arrived with attacking intent and raced to 26 off 27 deliveries, as he combined with Travis Head in a crucial 31-run stand. Head, who looked fluent throughout his 39 off 60, was eventually bowled by a sharp in-swinger from Shamar Joseph in the final session—ending a potentially game-defining innings.

Still, with Carey looking set, the Australians were intent on a lower-order resistance to swell their lead beyond what it is, but bad light ended play prematurely. (Sportsmax) 

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A new generation of Guyanese squash talent has emphatically announced itself on the Caribbean stage, sweeping the boys’, girls’, and overall team titles at the 2025 Caribbean Area Squash Association (CASA) Junior Championships in the Cayman Islands.

This marks Guyana’s first overall title since their 2022 victory on home soil, reasserting a dominance that saw them win an unprecedented 12 consecutive championships from 2005 to 2016.

The culmination of a week of impressive performances saw the Guyanese contingent overcome formidable rivals in thrilling team finals on Saturday.

The boys’ team triumphed over Trinidad and Tobago in a hard-fought contest, while the girls’ team saw off a strong challenge from Barbados to seal their respective titles.

The victory was a testament to the depth and resilience of the squad, who had already amassed a significant medal haul in the individual and doubles events earlier in the week.

In the girls’ team final, it was Emily Fung-A-Fatt who clinched the decisive match, securing a 4-2 victory for Guyana over Barbados and sparking jubilant celebrations among the travelling supporters.

The boys’ final was an equally tense affair against Trinidad and Tobago, with Guyana ultimately prevailing 6-3 in matches and a nail-biting 11-10 in games won, showcasing the fine margins and competitive spirit of the encounter.

This collective success was built on a foundation of outstanding individual achievements.

The mixed doubles pairing of Louis Da Silva and Avery Arjoon provided one of the most dramatic moments of the tournament, battling back from triple match point down to claim a stunning gold medal against the Barbadian duo of Luke Wilson and Eboni Atherley.

The Guyanese pair showed immense composure to take the match 11-8, 8-11, 11-10.

This was the second gold of the championships for both Da Silva (U-19) and Arjoon (U-17), who had earlier triumphed in their respective individual categories.

Guyana’s dominance was further underlined by individual gold medals for Kaylee Lowe in the Under-15 category and Alexis Arjoon in the Under-11s.

There was also a string of silver medals for Emily Fung-A-Fatt (U-17), Ethan Bulkan (U-13), Zion Hickerson (U-13), and Justin Ten Pow (U-15), highlighting the strength across multiple age groups.

The doubles events also added to Guyana’s impressive tally, with Shiloh Asregado and Justin Ten Pow taking bronze in the boys’ doubles, and Kaylee Lowe and Emily Fung-A-Fat securing bronze in the girls’ doubles.

Full team results: https://www.sportyhq.com/tournament/view/2025-CASA-Junior-Team-Championships

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Red Bull’s Max Verstappen pipped McLaren’s Oscar Piastri to pole position at the British Grand Prix with the very last lap of qualifying.

Verstappen beat Piastri by 0.103 seconds, with McLaren’s Lando Norris just 0.015secs behind in third and Mercedes’ George Russell a further 0.019secs adrift in fourth.

Lewis Hamilton, second quickest behind Piastri after the first runs in final qualifying, slipped back to fifth at the end, just ahead of his Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc.

Briton Oliver Bearman was an excellent eighth for Haas, but will be demoted to 18th on the grid because of a 10-place penalty for going too fast under red-flag conditions in practice, when he crashed in the pit lane.

In the other Mercedes, Kimi Antonelli was seventh but he has a three-place grid penalty from his crash with Verstappen in Austria.

Those penalties promote Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin from ninth. Alpine’s Pierre Gasly completed the top 10. (BBC) 

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England lost three top-order wickets before the close as India surged towards victory in the second Test after their captain Shubman Gill’s run-fest continued at Edgbaston.

Faced with the choice of batting for a draw or going after a chase of a near-impossible 608, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett and Joe Root all fell to leave the hosts 72-3 at the end of day four.

Crawley played a wild drive in the second over to be caught for a duck and Duckett hit five boundaries before being bowled by Akash Deep for a 15-ball 25.

The electric Deep, who has thrilled with the new-ball in his first Test in England, then struck the crucial blow by sensationally bowling Root for six.

England had been kept in the field until 90 minutes before the finish as Gill followed his epic 269 in the first innings with a dismissive 161 which allowed India to declare on 427-6.

He is the first player to record scores in excess of 250 and 150 in the same Test while his overall haul of 430 this week is the second-highest in Test history.

Despite the forecast of morning rain, Gill’s side are now overwhelming favourites to secure the win on day five that would level this series at 1-1. (ESPNcricinfo) 

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Persistent inclement weather has forced Kares One Guyana T10 Tapeball Blast, FL Sport organizers to postpone the East Bank/West Demerara zone matches after heavy rain drenched all three venues on Saturday.

FL Sport announced that, provided conditions improve, efforts are underway to play some of the round-of-16 matches on Monday, July 7.

Alternate dates of Saturday, July 12, and Saturday, July 26, are also on the agenda to crown a zonal champion before the national finals on Sunday, August 3, 2025.

“The inclement weather has been a jolt to proceedings today, but we have options in place to ensure all zones are completed before the finals on August 3,” explained John Ramsingh, Co-Director of the organizing committee.

Sixteen teams are slated to compete in the East Bank Demerara/West Demerara zone, all vying for a coveted spot in the national finals. These teams include Diamond Gunners, Soesdyke XI, Eccles All-Stars, 592 Gunners, Hyde Park, Young Guns, Laluni, Timerhi Sports Club, Visionary Vipers (from Saxacalli), Trendsetters, The Guard, Stripling Warriors, Tourism Guyana Titans, Young Steppaz, CJIA Warriors, and K&B All-Stars.

Beyond the prestige of reaching the national final, the zone champion will be rewarded with a significant prize of GYD$300,000 and a specially commissioned trophy. They will then compete for a further GYD$1.7 million in the national finals. The runner-up in the zone final will also receive a substantial prize of GYD$100,000.

The stakes will be even higher at the national finals, where the runner-up will take home GYD$700,000, along with a trophy and medals, while the two losing semi-finalists will each receive GYD$300,000.

The tournament will continue with the Georgetown/East Coast Demerara zone scheduled for July 19-20, followed by the Essequibo zone on July 26-27. The grand national finals are slated for Sunday, August 3.

The Kares One Guyana T10 Tapeball Blast has garnered support from Kares Engineering Inc., the Office of the President, the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, KFC Guyana, Star Rentals, Banks DIH, ENet, Guyana Lottery Company, Regal Stationery and Computer Centre, Impressions, Avinash Contracting and Scrap Metal, Shawn’s Mini Mart, Giftland Group of Companies, Kris Jagdeo Construction Company, Montra Restaurant and Lounge, Windsor Estates, The New Doctor’s Clinic, GuyOil, ANSA McAL, SuperBet Guyana, Digital Technology, Camille’s Academy, Navin Construction, Demerara Mutual Life Insurance, Continental Transportation, and Environmental and Technical Solutions.

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President Dr. Irfaan Ali announced on Friday that the Government of Guyana will soon begin talks with private institutions to make medical science studies more affordable for students interested in the field.

“Yesterday at Cabinet, we made a decision that because of the high demand for medical sciences at UG now- (because of) the free university education- we don’t want those students to wait.

“So we are going to negotiate with the local providers from the private instirutions to do it for the same price like UG, so we can have all those students placed,” President Ali said as he addressed those gathered for the commissioning of the new Enmore Regional Hospital.

The Guyanese Head of State said this move adds to all of the other training opportunities provided to persons interested in the medical field. He also reminded the gathering that the government has been supporting the upskilling of healthcare professionals and has made tertiary education free.

Because the University of Guyana, like other tertiary institutions, can only accept a certain number of students, the President said the government will support students’ studies elsewhere.

“We are going to adjust the system to fast forward the dreams of Guyanese people,” he said.

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The Guyana Prize for Literature made its highly anticipated return on Friday evening with an intimate, formal awards ceremony hosted at the Pegasus Corporate Building in Kingston, Georgetown.

Delivering the feature address, Prime Minister Mark Phillips acknowledged the prize’s historic legacy and its renewed direction. In a light-hearted moment, he quipped, “We’ve set another record; finishing before 10:30 p.m.” to the amusement of those gathered.

The Prime Minister reflected on the challenges the prize faced in recent years, particularly in 2017 when a public call for submissions was issued but no awards ceremony followed. Dozens of entries were submitted by both emerging and established writers, poets and fiction authors — many of whom, especially those residing in Guyana, had to invest in producing six printed copies of their manuscripts.

“To have made that level of personal and financial investment, only for it to go unacknowledged — I can only imagine how disappointing and devastating that must have been,” Phillips said.

The prize was not awarded in 2018 or 2019 but has since been restructured and revitalised. Among the most significant changes is the decision to host the awards annually instead of biennially, creating more frequent opportunities for literary recognition.

In addition, the award categories have been expanded to reflect a wider range of genres and talents, including the introduction of a Youth Category aimed at nurturing the next generation of writers. Keeping pace with technological progress, the submission process has also moved online, removing previous barriers related to cost and access.

“Literature is a pillar of our national heritage, and preserving it is essential,” the Prime Minister emphasised. He noted that in two years, the Guyana Prize will mark its 40th anniversary — a significant milestone in the country’s cultural and literary history.

He closed his address by congratulating all those who submitted entries, saying: “Thank you for being part of this wonderful celebration of Guyanese creativity.”

By Deandra Daniels 

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Prominent miner and industry leader Ronaldo Alphonso has thrown his full support behind President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali’s bid for a second term, praising what he calls “real, tangible benefits” delivered to Guyana’s mining sector over the past five years.

Alphonso, who has spent more than two decades in the gold mining industry and serves as President of the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association, made the endorsement in a statement issued as Managing Director of Adamantium Mining.

“This government has not only listened but acted. That’s why I have no hesitation endorsing President Ali for a second term,” Alphonso said.

He pointed to a series of measures under the Ali administration that he says have directly lowered costs for miners, spurred new investment and removed longstanding burdens that once made operations more difficult.

“We’ve seen VAT and taxes removed on ATVs and machinery. The fuel excise tax? Gone. Even hinterland travel now costs less,” he noted.

According to Alphonso, the government has also scrapped red tape such as the police clearance for fuel transport and road licences for mining equipment — changes he says have made operations more efficient.

“These aren’t empty promises — they’ve put more money back into miners’ pockets,” Alphonso declared, referencing the flat 2.5% final tax and removal of the 10% tributor’s tax.

He also highlighted what he called a “landmark” investment agreement that allows qualifying miners to import duty-free vehicles and spares — a move he says demonstrates the government’s understanding of the industry’s role in Guyana’s economy.

While he acknowledged that challenges remain, Alphonso said the President’s open-door policy has given miners a reliable partner in government.

“When we knock, the door opens. That’s the leadership we need,” he said.

Alphonso said he looks forward to building on the gains already made, stressing that the next term will be critical for sustaining growth and ensuring that the benefits reach every corner of the sector.

“We’re ready to keep working — and with President Ali, we know we have someone in our corner,” he added.

Guyana’s next General and Regional Elections are set for 1 September 2025.

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