‘The hand we were dealt’
JTTA president defends tenure Claims association hit with a myriad of problems that predated appointment
Published:Sunday | June 18, 2023 | 1:28 AMJob Nelson - Sports Coordinator
PRESIDENT ANDREW Lue is stoutly defending his administration’s two-year tenure at the helm of the beleaguered Jamaica Table Tennis Association (JTTA), citing COVID-19, financial challenges and key resignations as impediments that hampered the executive’s progress.
According to Lue, the administration still achieved several notable objectives, and he dismissed detractors’ accusations that the administration’s inactivity affected partnerships that were fostered with manufacturer Stag for equipment and Japan for coaches.
He believes that the administration is also facing pushback within the table tennis fraternity because of decisions that were taken, which he fearlessly defended as being in the best interest of the sport.
Lue argued that his reign, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, faced challenges from the outset, having to battle through disunity after being swept into office behind a court case with former president Godfrey Lothian.
Among the successes of his administration, according to Lue, was while still in its infancy in 2021, being one of the island’s first sporting bodies to stage a national championship during the pandemic, while having to adhere to the various protocols and rules by the Government. This included costs for vaccinations and COVID-19 tests.
According to Lue, the administration sent a team to the Youth Pan American Championships in 2021 and followed again last year, with the national champs and Jamaica’s representation at three different levels, regionally.
He stated that the national championship was cancelled this year because of finances, which he blamed on a clash with a regional youth tournament.
“We had the youth and the National Championships running back to back, and so because we didn’t have enough resources to send both teams, we had to make a choice, and we went with the youth team, which was following up on their third-place finish last year,” Lue said.
Meanwhile, Lue noted that the administration took up office with a debt of $4 million, including a cess imposed by the Latin American Table Tennis Union (LATTU) because the previous JTTA administration opted out of international tournaments. He stated that the JTTA was forced to settle that debt, as the island would have been barred from international participation otherwise.
NEW DEBT
He outlined that debt to local coaches was also offset but admitted that the JTTA still owes just about $4 million, having incurred new debt, including borrowing $1 million for hotel accommodation for a national team in the Dominican Republic last year.
According to Lue, JTTA’s 16-member managing council was hit with a slew of resignations during the two years, starting immediately after taking up office with the departure of second vice-president Danville Walker, who had other commitments to attend to.
He refuted claims that he dismissed individuals from the council.
“I have not run anybody off the administration. That is unfounded, as nobody can say that I run them. People resigned because they felt like resigning, because of personal reasons,” Lue said, while claiming that one individual was suspended because the council lost confidence in him.
In the meantime, according to Lue, the deal with Stag expired in 2021, but the equipment manufacturer acceded to a request by his administration for one final shipment. He contends that this was during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, and freight costs had skyrocketed, pushing the shipping expense to US$20,000 (approximately J$3 million), which was out of the reach of the JTTA.
Lue claims that the deal with Japan for coaches will be renewed shortly, as the JTTA has several applications for Japanese volunteers and will soon finalise the individuals who will take up the positions on the island next year.
He was adamant that his administration fought through all the difficult circumstances to advance the island’s table tennis presence.
“Based on the hand we were dealt and the fact that we have been trying very hard to win back corporate support and be able to procure sponsors for all regional tournaments that have been kept to put Jamaica back on the regional scene, I think we did well.”