BELIZE CITY, Thurs. Aug. 11, 2022 For whatever reason, certain sports organizations, beginning with the Athletics Association of Belize and lately including the Belize Olympic Committee and the Belize Volleyball Association, have not felt it convenient to share emails with the Amandala sports desk, so we can share the exploits of the athletes with our readers.

We have heard some things were on “social media”, but we prefer to get official facts and figures from “the horse’s mouth” via direct communication by email. Surprisingly, of late the reincarnation of the Premier League of Belize (PLB), about which we have commented frankly on their election problems, seems to have also forgotten our email address. Word around is that a new PLB season has started a couple weeks now. When they deem it expedient to share the information with us, we’ ll play catch up with the competition.

Until then, we are very happy to share with our readers, the young ones especially, the New York Times story of the recently departed legend, a giant of our times, Bill Russell.

This article is long, and we may have to continue it in a few editions. We had intended to do only a few excerpts, but when we were struck by a revelation that hit a cord back home in our own sports culture, we felt the urge to go all the way and just reprint the whole article.

There is one Belizean football legend, retired only a few years now, who, according to very close associates and teammates, had a strange pre- game ritual similar to what has been described with Bill Russell. And both have been considered the best in their time, and by some even the G.O.A.T. in their particular sport. We’re referring here to our own Norman “Tilliman” Nunez/ Pipersburgh in Belize football. You’ll find out what peculiar trait he had in common with basketball legend Bill Russell if you read the NY Times article: “Bill Russell, who transformed pro basketball, dies at 88.”