Paddlers Race from Boom to Belize City and GPH Comes Alive

Goodnight and welcome to another edition of Sports Monday, I am Paul Lopez. The La Ruta Maya Belize River Challenge is two weeks away. The Boom to the City Canoe Race sets the stage for that monster event. 

On Sunday morning, twenty-five canoes were at the starting line in Burrell Boom Village. The starting horn goes off and the paddlers began to dig deep as they all sped off.

 

Paul Lopez, Reporting

At Manatee Lookout, just outside of Belize City, Team Lucas is leading the charge. Team Guava Limb is close by in second place.  Right on their tails are the Belize Coast Guard and Black Orchid Resort. Team PACT and Team Wild pressed on behind the four lead canoes, as did Westline, Wateva Boys and Riverside. At the Riverside Tavern in Belize City, two hours and forty-three minutes after the start of the race, the Belize Coast Guard crosses the finish line in first place, all alone. Almost a minute later, Guava Limb paddles across the finish, followed by Black Orchid Resort in third place.  Team Lucas secured fourth place and PACT took the fifth spot.  We spoke with the victors of this challenge.

 

Daniel Gregorio, Paddler, Belize Coast Guard 1.5

“It started to play in our favor when we were coming to the creek mouth from there we said alright then.  We were in a set position. The position we didn’t want it, but we still ended up top three in it and from then we wade out wade out, wade out and the two top teams crashed each other and we took it from there and didn’t back down nothing.”

 

 

Let’s head back to the village where the Boom to City Canoe Challenge started, this time for the ninth Annual Boom Run. This run features races in three categories, the five, ten and fifteen kilometer races.

 

A total of nine runners took off from the starting line for the fifteen-kilometer race. Shortly after, the starting horn went off for the ten runners who ran the ten-kilometer race. The largest group of runners, more than two dozen, participated in the five kilometer run.  Taking on the morning’s cool and asphalt road, one foot in front these runners raced on.  At the five-kilometer finish line, Christopher Broaster ran in at first place.  First place in the ten kilometer race went to Jovanny Baizar and in the female category; the first prize went to Jennifer Lopez. Albert Davis secured first place in the fifteen kilometer race, adding another gold medal to his collection. Dorisha Sabido also won gold for that distance in the female category.

 

 

From running the road to riding the highway, the second annual Alfred Parks Memorial Race was nothing short of exciting. For the elite race, the starting line was established in Cotton Tree Village. Riders rode west to the Loma Luz Boulevard, made a u-turn and then rode east to Belize City. From the starting line all the way to Central Farm, the field of riders remained together for the most part. The only time we saw breakaways were during sprints for station prizes.  Here, on the Loma Luz Boulevard, we see the lead group of ten riders turning on the roundabout as they begin their ride east. The main field of riders only seconds behind.

 

 

In Roaring Creek, Jyven Gonzalez streams past in first place, closely followed by Guatemalan rider Roney Julaju. The main field of riders was just under a minute behind the lead group. Julaju pressed gas just outside of Belmopan and created a significant gap between himself and the lead group. Outside of Saint Matthew’s Village, Jyven Gonzalez is leading a group of eleven riders who are twenty seconds behind lead rider Julaju. A short distance from the Belize Zoo, Julaju’s lead has been cut down, bringing his valiant effort to an end. Melvin Torres makes the dash towards him. Bob Gabourel, from nowhere, challenges Julaju for the station prize. Approaching mile eight, Jyven Gonzalez opens a gap with a surprise attack as he sprinted towards the  wheels of Bob Gabourel who was out-front.

 

 

With only a short distance left to the finish, Gonzalez gets out of his saddle and rides off ahead of Gabourel. Jyven Gonzalez won the race and was crowned the 2024 Alfred Parks Memorial Race Champion. Bob Gabourel took home the silver medal, followed by Oscar Quiroz in third place. And finally for tonight, we bring you some action from the William Dawson Peace Cup.

 

 

 

We bring you highlights from the match between Lake I FC and Hattieville FC. That game ended in favor of Lake I FC, two goals to one. Twenty minutes into the match, Carlton Roberts capitalized on this opportunity for Hattieville. Right before the close of the first half, Lawnie Leslie placed Lake I on the scoreboard with this skillful touch into the goal. Lake I FC secured another victory with this free kick from on top of the penalty box, given off a whistle for a hand ball.

 

Well Folks that is all we have for you in tonight’s coverage of Sports Monday. Catch you in the next one.