BELIZE CITY, Mon. Feb. 14, 2022– In late July 2021, 45-year-old Victor Martin, Staff Sergeant, Special Force operator, and a physical instructor for the Belize Defence Force (BDF), lost his life in a tragic road traffic accident on the George Price Highway. To keep his memory and his love of fitness alive, the family of Sergeant Victor Martin and the Freetown Reserve organized a 15k marathon that was held on Valentine’s Day, which would have been Sergeant Victor Martin’s 46th birthday. The race started at Price Barracks and concluded on Freetown Road near Atlantic Bank.
Rodvern Lino, race organizer for Freetown Reserve, explained, “We decided to do a Valentine Day race last year when we were lifting restrictions in terms of non-contact sports. So we did it last year, and we did another race on the 15th of January, which is the Geroge Price Day Race. At that point, we decided we will do again the Valentine Day race, but this time we would dedicate it to Victor Martin, who was a runner himself, and he was a friend of ours as well.”
“That’s the hope—to keep his memory alive, and what you will remember about him was that he was a physical man. He was a PTI, so that’s what we’re trying to promote here, remembering him and remembering the person he was,” Limo further said.
Present at the marathon was Anna Bennett, the sister of the deceased soldier, who told reporters that, because running was one of her late brother’s life’s passions, they decided to keep the memory of him alive through such a race. “When my mom came up with the idea, in late January, we decided that my younger sister and I, Ella, that we’ll put it together. Ella started the administrative work, then I got involved thereafter and finished up and making sure that the race was a success,” she said.
“When asked to help in planning, I had zero reservation, not only as a friend of the family but a councilor with responsibilities for sports in the city. I wholeheartedly support initiatives such as these that encourage residents to participate in physical activities and promote a healthy lifestyle,” stated Kaya Cattouse, Councilor in the Belize City Council for Youth, Sports & Wellness.
A total of 39 persons participated in the race.
The accident which claimed Sergeant Martin’s life occurred on Tuesday evening, July 27, last year after Martin left the Ladyville Price Barracks and headed westward. When he neared Cotton Tree Village, his motorbike collided with the pickup of Arlie Ayala, who was making a left turn into a gas station. Martin’s motorcycle crashed into the pickup head-on, and he was flung from his motorbike before it burst into flames. He was found motionless in the nearby bushes.