Test passed!
By Isaiah Chappelle
Guyana Chronicle
February 17, 2007
GUYANESE had a first hand taste of what international events entailed in yesterday’s trial run to Cricket World Cup (CWC) with a Twenty20 cricket match at the Guyana National Stadium at Providence, East Bank Demerara, coming off with a general pass grade.
President Bharrat Jagdeo visited the stadium at about 15:30h and the official CWC mascot, Mello, also made the rounds.
According to the Government Information Agency (GINA), the President said he saw a lot of logistics that would be necessary for mega events being tested and gathering from reports, the testing went well.
“There are still some issues that we have to work on.”
GINA said he noted that Guyana was one of the few countries that were actually testing the stadium and the exercise highlighted some minor glitches, like the traffic jam because of construction on a new bridge by Buddy’s International Hotel.
President Jagdeo said the work to widen the road to facilitate smoother traffic would be finished before the first game on March 28, the agency reported.
After the game between Young Warriors of Berbice and the Georgetown Cricket Club, the President checked minor works that were still incomplete. He was accompanied by Technical Consultant, Mr. Walter Willis and Chief Executive Officer of the Local Organising Committee (LOC), Mr. Karan Singh.
While the actual play area was not the main focus because that was already passed by the International Cricket Council (ICC) team, LOC Marketing/Communications Manager, Mr. Richard Hanif told the Guyana Chronicle that the LOC still looked out for “smudges” that might have arisen.
“But everything went well.”
Hanif said the day’s exercise was well managed, especially in the light that it was the first time an event was staged at such a level.
“There are going to be minor matters from which we could learn. It was good.”
Hanif said members of the public were exposed to new experiences, like being examined for prohibited and restricted items.
“They had a first hand experience of what hosting large events entailed.”
One patron ripped off a pocket of a bag that had the name of a cellular phone service provider, so that he could take it into the stadium.
Several persons took along refreshments and had to either consume or dump them because plastic bottles were not allowed in the venue.
Seventeen-year old Ricardo of Pigeon Island, East Coast Demerara, a student of Laser Edge Academic School in Better Hope, chose to drink his aerated beverage bottled by a company that was not a sponsor.
Admission to the venue was the biggest bugbear because no tickets were given out at the gate as had previously been planned and a huge crowd built up outside the gate.
CEO Singh told the Guyana Chronicle there was a change from the original plan and tickets were sent to national sports bodies, schools, government ministries and National Democratic Councils (NDC), totalling about 10,000.
However, about half an hour after the first ball was bowled at 13:55h, the stands were still sparsely occupied and the official was toying with the idea of allowing people to enter without tickets and just pass them through the security checks.
A teacher of St Ann’s Primary of Agricola, East Bank Demerara, said the school contacted the LOC and collected 40 tickets from the Middle Street, Georgetown office. The school sent members of their softball teams.
However, several school groups turned up without tickets and at 14:30h, Singh decided to allow those contingents with teachers supervising uniformed students to enter, tearing tickets into several pieces for them to pass in.
Thirteen students from Central Corentyne Secondary, with a teacher and a driver, benefited from the decision. They started their journey from Berbice to the stadium at 04:00h yesterday.
However, the match and experience was well worth the trouble and one spectator from West Coast Berbice said she enjoyed the experience.
“It was alright. The match was okay. It was exciting towards the ending part. The experience was nice, only the traffic to get there. Apart from that it was good.”
She said they took as long as two hours to travel from the city to Providence, moving at a snail’s pace from about Houston.
Assistant Commissioner of Police Paul Slowe, Commander of A Division, said the traffic congestion could not be avoided because the highway and parking areas were not yet complete.
“The traffic arrangements for the real event would not be like this. Traffic to the stadium will be on the eastern carriageway, while non-stadium commuters will use the western one.”