Racquetball is so popular in Bolivia that companies closed early so that employees could attend the opening ceremonies, held in the main square. The Jamaican team received an incredible amount of cheers and applause. In fact, we were ranked right up there as the top five best received teams. Such a warm response surprised even us. Evidently, Jamaica is a popular island among many south of the equator.

Media attention to these games was outstanding! As one of the top three most popular sports in the country, the World Championships were treated as a national showcase opportunity. Articles appeared in the newspapers everyday and TV and radio personalities were on hand throughout the entire games. The local fascination with Jamaica's appearance in these games led to numerous newspaper interviews. Barnes was featured in a TV appearance also.

HOW IT ALL WENT DOWN: MEN'S

Jamaica vs #3 seeded Mexico - lost (no surprise there)

vs Australia (these are the guys that play the US professional circuit- just for the experience) - lost

vs Netherlands (1 more lost & we're out) - won game 1, lost game 2, won decisively in a tie breaker (whew!)

That would put us in the quarterfinals for the third division medal rounds. Basically a win over the next opponent guarantees at least a fourth place medal. Any more losses and we're done.
Quarterfinals vs Nigeria, Edwards with an injury causing severe pain while swinging a backhand. Our Nigerian friend strategically controlled the game and earned a win to play Guam for the third place medal. Edwards' injury was serious enough to keep him off the court for over six months.

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