Looks like not all of George LasCaris’ claims of wrongdoing against the Barbados Cup are being met with approval.
Errol Griffith, chairman of the Great Barbados Soccer Classic, has dismissed LasCaris’ suggestions that his tournament has been intentionally conceptualized as direct competition.
Griffith expressed the sentiment just days after LasCaris questioned the motive behind the creation of another sports tourism-based football tournament.
“I have absolutely no interest in soccer [but], I have a passion in terms of people development and our whole nation transforming by grasping whatever opportunity is available,” said Griffith in a telephone interview with WEEKENDSPORT.
“We decided to create a new tournament in Barbados where the major target market is Ontario teams and let them come and play teams from Barbados.
“This will be a soccer holiday for Canadian students between ages 12 and 18.”
Earlier in the week, Lascaris raised red flags over the creation of the Great Barbados Soccer Classic, having learnt the competition was set to run just two weeks ahead of his annual Easter tournament next year.
LasCaris also referred to the scheduling conflict made public earlier this week when it was revealed that the opening ceremony of the Barbados Cup was booked at the National Stadium on the same day as CARIFTA trials and the Barbados Football Association’s (BFA) knockout’s first round.
The situation has since been resolved with both the CARIFTA trials and the BFA knockout matches being rescheduled.
Griffith said the Soccer Classic came out of a venture that started as offering a Barbados trip as a grand prize to the Aurora Youth Soccer Club in Ontario.
“An Adventist school in Ontario heard about it and said they also wanted one, then they raised about $60 000 after raising only $20 000 the year before and out of that they brought their annual mission trip to Barbados, where 78 people came,” said Griffith.
“So the whole idea then came up about creating a major tournament in Barbados. The [Barbados Tourism?Authority] came on board, the National Sports Council came on board. So it was being developed as a sports tourism initiative.
“Then we identified the perfect window for the tournament as spring break because a lot of Ontario teams want to travel in spring break.”
The inaugural Great Barbados Soccer Classic was to run from March 14 to 19 this year, but has been pushed back to next year as the organisers couldn’t capitalize on the small window available.
