COVID-19 freezes Argentina-Jamaica sporting links
Published:Wednesday | December 9, 2020 | 12:05 AMRomario Scott/Gleaner Writer
Argentinian Ambassador to Jamaica Luis Del Solar has lamented that the coronavirus pandemic has delayed a number of partnerships he was pushing to forge with Jamaica.
Among them, the introduction of rugby in prisons as a means of rehabilitation, a polo tournament and the roll-out of a football programme.
In a recent interview at his offices in New Kingston, Solar told The Gleaner he has not given up on the plans, as he seeks to deepen Jamaica’s relationship with the South American country.
“We have a good relationship [but] we have a lot of work to do to make it deeper,” said Solar, now a year and a half into his tour of duty in the country.
SPIRIT OF TEAMWORK
“We are trying to work to create some sort of cooperation between Argentina and Jamaica on football. We also have a programme in Argentina that has been working fantastically well to rehabilitate the inmates, because rugby, as any other sport, creates a spirit of discipline and teamwork, and it has been very successful in Argentina so we want to expose the idea to Jamaica,” he added.
Over the next couple of years, the ambassador said he will be making an effort to expose Jamaicans to Argentinian culture.
“That’s why I think things like movies or sports can be a very good [avenue] to get more close and understand each other. I think there (is no) problem between each (country), we don’t know much about each other, and that’s the challenge,” Solar stated as he revealed his plans to strengthen ties with Jamaica.
“We had something that was planned – a Latin American festival – but unfortunately, it was cancelled [due to the pandemic]. We are planning other [delivery methods], maybe online or cable,” he said.
He said that not many natives of Argentina live in Jamaica but that there were thousands of tourist from that country visiting the island’s shores every year.