Georgetown, Guyana – (September 28, 2017) The Ministry of Social Cohesion in collaboration with the National Sports Commission (NSC), today, hosted the National ‘Skip to my Lou’ (Jump Rope) Competition at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall, Georgetown. The competition, which was officially launched on September 22, is in keeping with the theme for Education Month this year, ‘Promoting wellness in communities through quality education’. Participants from nine primary schools and eleven secondary schools from across the country participated in the competition.
Minister of Social Cohesion, with responsibility for Culture, Youth and Sport, Dr. George Norton congratulated the participants and offered kind words of encouragement as he reminded them that they were all champions.
Dr. Norton spoke of the health and other benefits to be derived from participation in a competition of this nature. “This competition serves not only to make you physically fit but mentally fit [as well] which will help you to acquire the goals that you set for yourself in your academic performance. It also helps you to build relationship[s] among yourselves and of course to have interactions with persons of different backgrounds” Minister Norton said.
Jump Rope Instructor and Organiser of the Skip to My Lou Competition, Mr. Shavin Greene explained that the goal of the competition is not only to invoke a positive spirit of competitiveness among students but also to select the best jumpers to be trained in preparation for the World Jump Rope Championship in Orlando, Florida scheduled for July 2018. “We’re also hoping for the initiative to be a good after school activity so that the kids can be physically inclined within the school systems,” Mr. Green said.
Chief Education Officer, Mr. Marcel Hutson, said that wellness does not only speak to being in good physical condition but also being in a good frame of mind to make the right decisions. “I believe if we have a cadre of young people who are physically fit, they will be able to conduct themselves in such a way that they will make correct decisions and enjoy longevity as the continue their career paths” he said.
Regma, Christianburg, and Fort Ordance Primary schools secured first, second, and third place respectively, while in the secondary category, MacKenzie High, Christianburg Secondary, and Wakapoa Secondary were the first, second, and third place winners, respectively. The students competed for a variety of prizes including laptops, trophies and cash vouchers, as well as ‘bragging rights’.
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