The X11 edition of the South American Games kicked off yesterday in Paraguay and part of Guyana’s delegation was among the welcoming ceremony.

Guyana’s 16 athletes are set to compete in four disciplines; badminton, boxing, squash and table tennis.

The nation’s badminton players will be the first of the outfit to vie for medals when the discipline starts today and runs through October 7. Boxing punches off a day later and concludes on October 13 while the table tennis and squash players will spring into action from October 9 and 10 respectively.

Yesterday morning, skateboarding opened the competitions of the Games, which also had its opening ceremony in the emblematic Defensores del Chaco Stadium, in Asunción.The quadrennial Games, which first took place in 1978, will see 15 countries, including 12 from South America and three from Central America, compete for honours in 53 different sports until October 15.

Some 5,000 athletes from 15 countries and more than 1,800 officials who are joined by 4,500 volunteers and some 10,000 spectators are expected to visit Paraguay over the coming weeks.