BELIZE CITY, Wed. Feb. 7, 2018– The 2018 Cycling Calendar hit the pavement with a bang on New Year’s Day, featuring the Krem New Year’s Day Cycling Classic, the next biggest annual cycling event to the historic Holy Saturday Cross Country Classic.

We have been treated with some regular weekly reports on races hosted by the Weekend Warriors, as well as by individual cyclists or groups foraging into special events across our northern border, in Merida and Ciudad Del Carmen. This coming weekend, we understand that the Cycling Federation will be holding its annual DigiCell Elite Valentine’s Tour.

At the sports desk, we jump at any opportunity to feed the flames of cycling enthusiasm, as the weeks fly by, in anticipation of the frenzied peak of the cycling season on Holy Saturday. And there is always a little bit of controversy to help fuel the cycling fever.

A leaked letter on Monday from a lawyer representing Elite male cyclist Tariq Cano, criticizes Cycling Federation President, Dion Leslie (who is also presently campaigning for Mayor of Belize City) for not abiding by the Federation’s constitution in refusing to call elections. After listing 7 concerns with the Federation’s managing of the sport, the letter requests a satisfactory official response within one week, or he will “exercise his legal rights… particularly as it relates to the failure to hold elections for the management committee of the CFB.”

Aside from that letter, Leslie’s Cycling Federation is also being called out for its shortcomings by cycling activist Kaya Cattouse, who is the current Female Sub-Champion of both premier national events, the 2017 Female Cross Country Classic and the 2018 Krem New Year’s Classic.  When Kaya talks cycling, we listen. Elsewhere in this issue, we print an article, “Kaya calls out Cycling Federation leadership,” addressing the problems in cycling from her perspective.

(NOTE: The 2017 Female Cross Country was held on the Sunday before the 2017 Holy Saturday Cross Country Classic, which features male riders.)