Athletes to take to the George Price Highway for the Valentine Cycling Classic

The annual Valentine’s Cycling Classic is less than two days away and riders from across the country, in various categories, will be participating in the tournament.  The race is the second activity on the cycling calendar leading up to the big event on Holy Saturday.  Competing this year are a number of international athletes who have made the journey to Belize to get in on the cash and prizes.  News Five caught up with Belize Cycling Federation President Deon Leslie who told us more about the race, as well as the recent name change of the organization.

Deon Leslie, President, Cycling Federation of Belize

“It will be starting at eight o’clock in the morning this Sunday in front of Leslie’s Imports at mile one and a half on the George Price Highway.  The masters, elite and under twenty-three they ride to mile forty-eight and turn and come back to finish in front of Leslie’s Imports, while the juniors, females and the youths they ride to mile twenty-six and return from mile twenty-six again to finish in front of Leslie’s Imports.  We invite everyone, this is the, out of the three big races that lead up to Cross Country, this is the second of the big races.  First, of course, we had the January 1^st Krem Classic.  This is the second big race which will then be followed by the Smart Belmopan Classic, then, of course, we’ll run into the Cross Country.  So we are just, of course, inviting everyone out Sunday to follow the race.  It will be broadcast live on Krem Radio and I invite you to follow the race.  We have some international riders coming in for this race, they are already here.  In fact, some of them rode the Thursday night twilight circuit that we have, they rode that last night and so we are expecting a good turnout.  We are expecting a competitive race.  Apart from that our riders, you know they’re competing for spots in upcoming competitions in Vera Cruz and other international competitions throughout the world that the cycling federation will be a part of.  So they’re riding with a cause, not only to win this race but because they know there is more at stake and to prove something going into Cross Country.”

Isani Cayetano

Deon Leslie

“I know you guys have recently changed the name of the association from BCA to the cycling federation.  Can you talk to us about how that came about?”

Deon Leslie

“It’s part of the process being now that after the entire year and change process of the elections and whatnot, the understanding was that we have to turn into a federation because now we have district associations.  So the association is the governing body for that district being the central or the northern or the western district and the federation is the top body that is the umbrella body that covers everything.  And so now we are in the process of redoing the entire constitution and one of the first steps is that we have to turn into a federation.  So the first draft of the constitution is out, we’re just waiting for everyone from the executive to get their input before we take it to the members to be ratified and then submitted to the UCI, the governing body of cycling, and to the National Sports Council and to the NOC, the National Olympic Committee.”