Holder beats Greaves to register second 35-lap victory
By Isaiah Chappelle
Guyana Chronicle
March 11, 2007
IN A breathtaking finish, yesterday, 14-year-old Christopher Holder beat the highly touted Alonzo Greaves to register a second consecutive 35-lap victory at the National Park, proving the first was not a one-off feat.
Holder crossed the finish line one wheel ahead of Greaves after bursting into the homestretch one cycle behind him, clocking 1:30:37.05 hours. Albert Philander was third, Shane Boodram fourth, John Charles fifth and 15-year old Daniel Ramchurajee sixth.
Philander claimed three sprint prizes, Greaves and Jaikarran Sahadeo two each and Charles one.
Up to the 16th lap, no clear leader emerged, but going in the 17th, Philander attacked but was back in the pack before the end of the lap.
Nothing much happened until the last eleven laps, when Greaves went into the lead, only to fall back in the pack, and again, with eight laps left.
Holder surged into the lead only to lose it to Ramchurajee for the next two laps. With three to go, Philander was again in the lead, but in the next lap, Holder took over. Then Ramchurajee attacked and went into the final lap with a 25-metre gap. He was caught coming down the northern bridge and the finish came down to a sprint.
Holder was fifth going into the final turn, but surged forward on the outside to reach just behind Greaves going into the straight. Then in an amazing burst, he passed Greaves about two metres from the finish line to take the race.
Earlier, the 1992-born who will turn 15 in October 15, signalled his intentions, by winning the ten-lap Juveniles race in 26:25 minutes, ahead of Ramchurajee in second and Jason Da Silva third.
Several veteran riders were barred from this category for not having a licence as ruled by the Guyana Cycling Federation (GCF). No stranger to the top place, Kennard Lovell, was first in the Under-45 five-lapper, with Shameer Baksh second, while in the Over-45 race, Virgil Jones was first and Anthony Fariah second.
Dennis Charles registered his first win in the National Park in Upright race, followed by Shawn Frank who won a sprint prize and Johnathan Fagundes third.
In the BMX races, the top rider was Fagundes who won the Open event, with Asif Shaw second and Anthony Freeman third.
The top two places were unchanged in the 12-14 Years division, with Jamal Heywood claiming the third place, while Dion Joseph and Jude Lewis claimed their first wins, competing in the 9-12 and 6-9 divisions respectively.
Kristal Blackman won the 6-12 Girls’ race, with Ashley Anthony second.
Junior cyclist Geron Williams, who was ill for the meet, presented the prizes on behalf of R&R International Limited.