Recently, the Guyana Council of Organisations for Persons with Disabilities (GCOPD) with support from ExxonMobil Guyana hosted a dominoes competition for persons who are blind and those with physical disabilities. The event took place at the headquarters of the Guyana Society for the Blind, 44 High Street, Werk-en-Rust, Georgetown.
Organized through the GCOPD ExxonMobil Guyana-funded Orientation and Mobility programme for persons who are blind or visually impaired, the competition aimed to promote disability inclusion in sports while creating an environment for social interaction among programme beneficiaries .
The participating teams included the “Cane Raiders” from the Guyana Society for the Blind, “Blind Sixes” from the Guyana Blind Cricket Association (GUYBCA) and the “Disability Sixes”, a team of persons with physical disabilities. The three teams engaged in six intense rounds of dominoes, with all players living with disabilities.
After a competitive tournament, the “Disability Sixes” team emerged victorious with a total of forty-nine (49) games. The “Cane Raiders” followed closely with forty-five (45) games and the “Blind Sixes” were last with forty-one (41) games. Notably, Silas Rogers, from the “Blind Raiders” and who is blind, copped the most games a total of twelve (12).
The winning team was awarded a trophy and cash prize, whileSilas Rogers also received a trophy and cash prize for winning the most games. All prizes were donated by GCOPD.
During the prize giving ceremony Ganesh Singh, Programme Manager of GCOPD, thanked the players for their enthusiastic participation in the highly competitive dominoes tournament and pledged the organization’s continued for similar competitions that promote disability inclusion in sports. He also highlighted the opportunities for social interactions provided by events like the dominoes competition.
The GCOPD’s Orientation and Mobility programme, which launched in 2022 with funding from ExxonMobil Guyana, is a transformative initiative . The programme that provides training to persons who are blind and visually impaired across Guyana to facilitate their independence. Training areas include the use the “White cane”, using computers and mobile phones with screen readers, navigatingpublic spaces, and completing simple household tasks independently, among other training areas.
GCOPD would appreciate publication of this release.
