Ride to victory

EIGHTEEN year-old deaf national cyclist Dominique Lovell may live in Arouca but her family describes the cycling track as her “second home”.

Lovell represented this country in the Junior Pan Am track cycling competition held at the Arima Velodrome last month.

She previously represented Trinidad and Tobago at the Caribbean Road Cycling Championship in Aruba a few years ago.

When Sunday Newsday arrived at the family’s Cane Farm home Lovell was on her stationary bike pedalling vigorously. The family proudly showed off her medals and a number of plaques and trophies.

Lovell attended the Cascade School for the Deaf, then Good Shepherd Anglican, and is currently a student at the El Dorado West Secondary School. Her mother Annmarie recalled that her daughter got interested in cycling at about age seven when she sold the most tickets for a school walkathon and won the prize - a bike. She enjoyed riding her bike and a teacher encouraged her to get involved in cycling at the club level.

Lovell was directed to the Arima Wheelers Club where fellow deaf cyclist Cheyenne Awai was a member. Her mother explained that she was “a very fast learner” and said when she first joined she had to ride with the boys because there were no other girls in the club. Asked how she felt about that Lovell signed that she “felt good because I used to beat the boys”.

For her first race she was entered in a handicap, but when the coaches saw that the boys could not catch up with her they realised that she could start at a higher level. Lovell began at the under 11 category and moved her way up, winning a number of “most outstanding” awards along the way, including for the Trinidad and Tobago Cycling Federation.

On the Junior Pan Am competition last month Lovell said that it was “a hard competition” but she “felt very proud to represent Trinidad and Tobago”. She did not medal but had personal bests in her pet event, the keirin (a race featuring six to eight riders following a small moped-type bike called a derny) in which she placed fourth overall. Lovell said that she learned a lot from being in the competition at that level. Her mother said that both she and her husband were surprised by how well she rode and looked like a professional in the test event.

“She did well and her very best.

We are very proud,” she added.

Her mother admitted that she does not watch the races because she gets too nervous. However, she takes on the roles of interpreter and chaperone.

She also explained that Lovell rides like any other cyclist and most people do not know that she is deaf. Asked what she likes most about cycling she responded “I like to win”.

She practices and trains every day of the week, including going to the gym, doing plyometrics (jump training) as well as riding on the road or the track. With all that training she has to balance her school work and homework and Lovell described it as challenging.

Her mother said that at times she is very tired and it is difficult to get up early, but her teachers are understanding.

Lovell’s dream is to compete in the next Olympics in Tokyo in 2020. She was impressed by the performance of local athletes at the recent Paralympics Games, but believes she will likely qualify for the Olympics.

Her mother recalled that at one point Lovell felt like giving up because she was not making the times.

Then she saw a cyclist with one deformed hand riding professionally and this motivated her to push forward with her goals. She was also inspired by her mentor, former national cyclist Jodi Goodridge and expressed special thanks to her club coach Fitzroy Daniel and national team coach Anthony Sealy.

At an academic level she is looking forward to doing her CXC exams and passing all her subjects. When she is not training or in school she also enjoys watching dance movies and photography, which she wants to do professionally.

Her advice to potential cyclists? You have to work hard and practice and train hard to get to your goals. Next year, when she turns 19, she will advance from Juniors to Seniors. Her next major event is the 2017 Easter Grand Prix.