Chance lands MVP Sports endorsement for 2023 season
-reiterates that athletes need tangible support to succeed
Arinze Chance, the national indoor 400m record holder and University of South Carolina standout landed the endorsement of local sports equipment and apparel giant, MVP Sports over the weekend.
Following the endorsement, Chance in an unselfish act of sportsmanship, called on the local administration of sport to do more for athletes. The move by MVP Sports is the second sponsorship pact signed by the star quarter miler.
Powerade, which is distributed by Banks DIH Limited, has also endorsed Chance.
“For any athlete to succeed, they need support and financial support is the most important form of support; athletes need encouragement,” Chance indicated, adding that his experience from competing across the world has taught him some valuable lessons about the sport. He said that importance of incentives for athletes cannot be understated.
“I learnt that athletes from other countries get an incentive before they even attend those Games. We are lacking this in Guyana, there is no support before, during or after competitions and there is no incentive for doing the sport we enjoy,” the outstanding student-athlete said.
He related that his counterparts right here in the Caribbean - Trinidad, Jamaica and others - are far more incentivized and supported at all levels than athletes here in Guyana and the results can be seen in those countries’ performances internationally, along with the added national benefit of sports tourism there. According to Chance, Guyana loses a lot of athletes along the way as a result of this lack of more tangible support; he believes the lack of support is the missing link for greater success from sport generally, and affects Guyana’s ability to develop a national identity.
“Sports assist in helping a country develop and also help in achieving national identity; knowing certain countries, you know they are identified by certain sports. We can do the same if we have the kind of support like athletes from those countries,” he said.
“We need solutions, athletes need to find comfort in representing this country. It’s not only about national pride, but sustenance for themselves;