Carlton Robinson Made Belizeans Proud on Holy Saturday
And, while a Belizean did not win the Ninety-Fourth Holy Saturday Cross Country Cycling Classic, as we said, Carlton Robinson of team Alliance United came in only twenty seconds behind the winner. He was the first Belizean to cross the finish line. But who is Carlton Robinson? That is what many are asking, as his name rose to prominence on Saturday. News Five’s Paul Lopez sought to find out more about this young athlete. Here is that report.
Paul Lopez, Reporting
Twenty-four-year-old cyclist Carlton Robinson crossed the finish line in fourth place in the ninety-fourth Holy Saturday Cross Country Cycling Classic. He was the first Belizean to cross the finish line. But who is this young man whose name filled the hearts of Belizeans with hopes of victory?
Carlton Robinson, 1st Belizean, 94th Cross Country Cycling Classic
“It is a wonderful feeling, but I don’t ride this race to be the first Belizean. I ride this race to win. It is an honor to be the first Belizean.”
Carlton Robinson picked up cycling in 2017, influenced by his father, Carl Robinson Senior, who rode as a hobby.
Carl Robinson Sr., Father of Carlton Robinson
“I got back on the bike due to some health complication. I was on the diabetic line, border line. I was overweight. I needed to shed some weight and that is when I personally took back the bike. So my oldest son was riding me at the time and this younger one wanted to ride and we got him a little mountain bike and that is when he started to ride. He met Byron Pope and from there he fell in love with the sport, and I could remember Andrew Ordonez telling me that I thought your older son was going to be it, but this guy right here, this younger one, he will be the one. As any good father would try, I encouraged him and stood by him, and I continue to encourage him and stand by him.”
A cyclist on the highways, and a tradesman by day, Carlton Robinson works alongside his father in their air conditioning business. A graduate of Sadie Vernon High School and ITVET, Carlton Robinson recalls first racing in competitions organised by Kaya Cattouse, a former women’s cross-country champion.
Carlton Robinson
“I started riding back in 2017 where my dad and my brother was just riding uncompetitively and I just decide to tag along with them. Kaya Cattouse headed some highschool series, where I went to try them out and fell in love with cycling.”
Recently, Carlton Robinson placed second in the DIGI Wallet Valentine Cycling Tour. And this is not his first time competing in a cross-country classic. However, his name was not ringing through your televisions or radios because Robinson did not complete his two attempts and he was the twenty-fourth rider to finish in 2023. But as fate would have it, he came in fourth place on his fourth ride in the classic.
Carlton Robinson
“The preparation was, we started to prepare for cross country from August. It is not just riding, we had a whole off season, went into the gym, did some gym work, some long hours on the bike, some seven, eight hours riding.”
Growing up in Belize City, Carlton Robinson encountered the same types of distractions and challenges that many youths are faced with in the Old Capital. But, his father and cycling kept him grounded.
Carl Robinson Sr.
“First of all you got to be stern, the rules got to be the rules. First of all you got to look out for their safety, because as we well know in Belize here it is very easy for the young men who don’t have any kind of guidance, parental guidance, especially a fatherly guidance to fall along the wayside. So I am heavy on getting an education and being compliant with the rules.”
Carlton Robinson
“Cycling will do that for you in a whole, when you are finished riding and you ride six to five hours, you don’t have time to do anything else. All you want to do is sleep. So that is the way.”
There has been an outpouring of congratulatory messages from Belizeans to Carlton Robinson, the first Belizean cyclist to cross the finish-line on Saturday. He says that he is overwhelmed by the support and that his heart is set on winning a Holy Saturday Cross Country Cycling Classic.
Carlton Robinson
“I know I put in the work to be here. This year I put in the most work I ever put in and I am just reaping what I put in.”
Carl Robinson
“For me as his father, I see it as a great achievement. We have come so far yet we haven’t reached where he wants to reach, where he should reach. I believe in him so very much; I know what he can do and I see how hard he works at getting what he wants to get done. I am super proud, as his dad, as a father, as a Belizean, because this is our national day of racing.”
Reporting for News Five, I am Paul Lopez.
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