Williams, Hamilton shine in T'dad
By Michael DaSilva
Stabroek News
April 12, 2003
Roraima Bikers cyclists Marlon Williams and Tyrone Hamilton placed second and third respectively in the 14-lap (42-mile) event for junior and international cyclists when the West Indies versus the World Cycling Series got underway in Trinidad and Tobago on Wednesday night.
According to reports from Trinidad, Hamilton, the only Guyanese on the West Indian team, out-sprinted the main chasing bunch to finish third behind Cuba's Joel Marino and Trinidad's Emile Abraham respectively in the international category. Both Marino and Abraham are Hamilton's team mates.
Williams on the other hand placed second to Trinidad's Adam Alexander in the junior category.
The two events were conducted simultaneously around the Queen's Park Savannah, and included cyclists from Columbia, Canada, Switzerland, Belgium, USA, Scotland, England, the Czech Republic, Trinidad, Barbados, Cuba, Antigua and Guyana.
Marino who returned one hour, 11 minutes 4 seconds in winning the event, won most of the TT$9000 in lap prizes, while Abraham won the peoples prize which was made up of contributions from the spectators which amounted to over TT$2000.
Fourth place went to Jamaica's Horace McFarlane while USA's Roger Farrel was fifth and Peter Klimes of the Czech Republic sixth.
According to Roraima Bikers' team manager John Martins who spoke to Stabroek Sport by telephone, Abraham and Marino broke away from main pack after six laps and were never challenged again. The two crossed the finish line approximately 500 metres ahead of the second bunch which included Hamilton, Williams, and Alexander among others.
Martins said Guyana's Jorge Emmerson who contested the junior category, suffered a puncture after the third lap and decided to quit. So too did Raymond Newton and Paul Choo-Wee-Nam who both contested the international category.
Newton suffered a puncture in the sixth lap and Choo-Wee-Nam a little later.
Martins said Dwayne Gibbs and Andrew Reece, as well a host of other local cyclists, contested the international event and while they did not finish among the top riders, they completed the distance.
The series will continue tonight at the Skinner Park with 23 track events.
Twenty three events are also carded for tomorrow and Sunday at the Queen's Park Oval's concrete track.
Other members of the West Indies team are; Julio Herrera, a 1999 Pan American gold medalist and Michael Pedrosa a 1999 Pan American Game bronze medalist. Both are from Cuba, it also includes Jamaica's Horace McFarlane, Barbados' Sean Kelly and Carlitos Jones and Trinidadians, Joshua Alexander, Guy Costa and Stephen Mangroo.
