Easter Grand Prix pedals off in Arima

The three-day affair pedals off at 5pm at the Arima Velodrome both today and tomorrow, and will be continuing at the National Cycling Centre in Couva on Easter Monday. Yesterday marked the official launch of the event as the Trinidad and Tobago Cycling Federation (TT CF) scheduled a press conference at the cycling facility in Couva, where the foreign athletes got the opportunity to view the arena for the first time.

President of the TT CF, Robert Farrier, encouraged the athletes to enjoy the experience and make the tournament a memorable one by battling with passion and sportsmanship.

“Always put your best foot forward, race hard, be fair, take back great memories and enjoy the beauty of Trinidad and Tobago,” he said. Participating countries over the Easter weekend include Antigua, Argentina, Barbados, Canada, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Great Britain, Guyana, Ireland, Jamaica, Suriname, USA, Venezuela and host country Trinidad and Tobago. Top cyclists for Trinidad and Tobago in the Grand Prix include Olympian and national record holder in the Flying 200m Njisane Phillip and multiple national champion Quincy Alexander. Also representing TT are in-form riders Teniel Campbell and Jabari Whiteman. Among the internationals scheduled to compete are two-time Olympian Hersony Canelon from Venezuela, Angie Roa of Colombia and Eoin Mullen hailing from Ireland.

Minister of Sport and Youth Affairs, Darryl Smith, was present yesterday to launch the event, where he expressed optimism that the Easter Grand Prix will be a big part of sports tourism in the future.

“This tournament is the initiation event in our continuous sport tourism drive towards establishing our facilities as the main hub in the region to generate top cyclists,” he said.

The Minister also encouraged citizens to take the opportunity over the long weekend to support the local athletes as they take on world class competition on the cycling track.

Admission is set at $50 for adults and $10 for children under 12 years. Entry is free to the morning session on Easter Monday.

TT Squad: Njisane Phillip (captain), Quincy Alexander, Teniel Campbell, Jabari Whiteman, Lorenzo Orosco, Joshua Alexander and Keron Bramble.