Jose Alberto Xol is Lionman for second year in a row
Good evening I’m James Adderley and you’re most welcome this issue of Sports Monday.
We take you immediately to Sand Lighters Promenade here in the city where the Belize Triathlon Association staged the ninth Lionman event as part of the tenth Celebrations. It happened yesterday. For the defending champion Jose Alberto Xol of Guatemala, being alone to prepare and meditate appears to be the modus operandi going in as he looks to repeat. Forty-eight year old Vernon Overton concentrates more on preventative procedures as he gets ready for the swim. Kenneth Butler, in the meantime, gets himself ready under the attentive devotion of his beautiful daughter and indeed the rendition of the Belize National Anthem by three of Belize’s most talented musicians adds to the pomp and circumstance. And with a peal of the whistle the athletes begin the point nine miles of swimming in the Caribbean Sea. Very quickly it becomes apparent that the Guatemalan Jose Alberto Xol is boss inside the waters as he establishes a commanding lead and indeed this kind of talent is world class. And here he is completing this leg in unchallenged fashion some three minutes ahead of his nearest contender as he heads to his bicycle. Next out of the swim is Francisco Lima who finished second last year. Some seven minutes behind Xol, the Choto boys, Giovanni and Jose prepare to embark on the twenty-four point eight miles of bike riding. However, on the bicycle, this nineteen year old rider Giovanni Choto makes up all of the seven more miles and more to complete the second leg in first place. Of course Xol used his big lead effectively to hang on and he finishes about a minute behind Choto. Still it’s Choto off to the foot race and the race takes on new intensity as Xol makes chase. Two laps from the finish Choto is tracked down by Xol and here he overtakes him. Young Giovanni tries to hold on desperately but going down the stretch Jose Alberto Xol pulls away to finish the course in two hours, thirty minutes and twenty seconds to repeat as Lionman champion in 2008. And Giovanni Choto waving a Belize flag comes in a minute and a half later in two hours, thirty-two minutes, one second to take second place. Francisco Lima of Guatemala finished third, Jose Choto hung on to fourth place while Allison Trapp, forty-one years old, rounds out the top five in this individual. But this Belizean top honours in the masters class.
Jose Alberto Xol, Lionman Champion 2008
“I think today was better, much longer and we suffered more.”
James Adderley
“Did you have bike problems when Giovanni Choto was speeding?”
Jose Alberto Xol
“No, I didn’t have much left in me so I just kept my pace and he continued in front. He practices hard on this terrain whereas we prepare in the hills. I am better at swimming in the marathon. I am very happy because we came to work hard and to win and we remained focused on that goal.”
Giovanni Choto, Second Place
“Dehn bwai hard fi beat cause full year dehn do dat yo know and we just mostly train pan bike. Me train fi di race dis year but dehn bwai just hard fi beat. Thankd God wi mi safe pan di swimming and di whole race.”
James Adderley
“How yoh feel bout yourself?”
Giovanni Choto
“Well, I feel good because I neva mi di expect dat.”
In the meantime folks, Jim Scott; swimmer, Andrea Sutherland; cyclist, and Kevin Seroki all combined this effort to win the corporate relay in two hours, thirty-six minutes, forty-four seconds, over six minutes behind the time post by the individual champion. They call themselves Reverse Oreo.
Kevin Seroki, Team Reverse Oreo
“We like to come out and just join and have fun and it’s a good event to show people and the young kids to get off the couch and come out and participate in fitness and do that kind of think. I’m glad to be—Jim gave me a call and Anthea—and I’m happy to come out and support you guys.”
Anthea Sutherland, Team Reverse Oreo
“It was good, I liked it. I had a lot of breeze but no problem.”
James Adderley
“Will you do this again?”
Anthea Sutherland
“Once dehn ask me, yes.”
Jim Scott, Team Reverse Oreo
“We’re just having fun and you know like Kevin said, we could motivate people to just get out and just whatever they like to do whether it’s running, walking, whether it’s riding competitively or whether it’s swimming. You have access to a pool or the sea. You know what, look around. You’ve got to be healthy and there are certain steps we have to do in our lifestyle and that’s all.”
Turning to the football scene, week seven of the RF&G Cup Tournament saw defending Champions Hankook Verdes challenge F.C. Belize inside the M.C.C. Grounds yesterday and we must say that our cameraman was certainly slow on the trigger as he missed the Tyrone Muschamp goal in the very opening minute of yesterday’s ballgame. Verdes tries to respond when Brandon Peyrefitte centers to Anthony Gonzalez whose header fails to beat Elroy Rawley in goal. Give T-Bully Muschamp the assist people as he finds Shannon Flowers and twenty-five minutes in F.C. Belize has a 2-zip lead. Folks, whatever Richard Jimenez is trying to do, he somehow drops this ball perfectly to Everald Gabourel who just isn’t ready to come up with the big touch. Again, Verdes on the attack and this time Brandon Peyrefitte does everything right except get the ball between the sticks. Folks, things tighten up considerably five minutes into second half play when Luis Mendez catches up with the center from off the right wing to make it a 2-1 score. F.C. Belize then looks to regain the two goal lead when Cristobal Gilharry sets table for Jeromy James, only the header is right at Jamie Brooks. This defensive move by Vallan Simms almost ties the ballgame for Verdes but Rawley makes sure that doesn’t happen. People the ballgame gets decided at the eighty-eighth minute when Jeromy James fires this bouncer that beats Brooks and F.C. Belize goes on to post the 3-1 big W to remain undefeated after seven outings.
In other action around the league, the San Pedro Dolphins sunk Suga Boys 4-2, Georgetown Ibayani doubled Wagiya 2-1, Benque D.C. and Belize Defence Force battled to a 2-all stalemate while Llagulei and Nizhee Corozal also drew 2-2. In the Northern Zone, F.C. Belize continues to lead with seventeen points, Corozal in second has eleven, Verdes and Juventus nine apiece and San Pedro shows eight. Llagulei leads the south zone with fourteen points, Ibayani has eleven, B.D.F. ten, Benque D.C. four and winless Wagiya one point. Week eight finds all Sunday matches in the RF&G Cup tournament. Corozal faces Verdes at Corozal and F.C. Belize travels to Suga Boys Juventus. Benque D.C. will host Llagulei, San Pedro sails to Wagiya and the B.D.F. will be at the M.C.C. Grounds against Ibayani.
Now here are the results from the Belize Bank Super League. Valley Renaissance blanked Kraal Road F.C. 2-zip, Texmar Boys edged Lucky Strike 1-nil, Western Rebels halted Tsunami 4-1, San Felipe and Cayo South settled for a 2-all draw and Barrio Fino beat Lake-Collet Survivors 3-2. On week four’s schedule in this league Texmar Boys will face Cayo South at Belmopan and San Felipe will be hosted at the M.C.C. Grounds by Collet-Lake Survivors. Both ballgames are scheduled for on Saturday. On Sunday Barrio Fino travels to Lucky Strike Tsunami and Valley Renaissance will battle it out at Caye Caulker and Kraal Road goes to the Norman Broaster Stadium to face Western Rebels.
Finally folks, the 2008 Guinness Nine Ball Pool Tournament saw seven teams compete for the title but it was G-Unit of Corozal that grabbed the five thousand dollar prize by mashing Advance Advertising in a splenditious 3-2 affair that saw Luis Campos beat Angel Vargas 5-3, Miguel Trejo beat Larry Lisbey by that same score and Wilmer Mejia got over Dennis Torro 5-2 and Manuel Ramos edged Audibaldo Monima 5-3 to tie the series at two apiece but Ian Glory burned Raymond Reid 5-1 in the tie-breaker to snatch top honour. We say congratulations to MVP Miguel Trejo of G-Unit.
That’s our show for today though. We invite you back next week on Tuesday. Jah over all, I’m James Adderley.
