By Neto Baptiste
The Antigua Contract Bridge Association (ACBA) has been chosen to host next year’s OECS Championships.
This was confirmed by head of the association, Deverel Forde, who said close to 20 teams will compete in the annual championships.
“The Antigua Contract Bridge Association and Antigua and Barbuda, will be hosting the OECS tournament next year and the date has already been established which is from the 29th to the 31st of May, and the venue is to be determined. The last time we hosted would have been 2013, so it’s our turn,” he said.
An estimated eight teams, to include defending champions St Kitts, will compete in the OECS division alongside St Lucia, Dominica, Anguilla, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Grenada and Antigua. The competition will also host an Open Division, which will see non-OECS countries compete for top honours.
Forde said the fraternity is looking forward to the tournament and all the benefits it brings.
“Well, the camaraderie from the other stakeholders and it’s an opportunity for us to present Antigua because people would have an opportunity to experience the Antiguan hospitality, its culture, its cuisine, its special places … it’s the usual event which takes place in the region where we get exposure to each other,” the president said.
Meanwhile, the association will be hosting a training and recruitment programme slated to start next week at its headquarters on Factory Road.
“What we are doing is inviting people who are interested to learn the game of bridge to come on register at the bridge club on Factory Road, just east of the fire station. We want to have two weekly sessions starting from next week Tuesday at 5 pm, and on Saturdays at 1 pm, and we want to run that programme for at least three months,” he said. Forde said the training programme is open to prospective members of all ages and gender.