T&T cyclists Makaira Wallace and Danell James added more silverware when they raced to individual bronze medals in their respective six-lap keirin finals at the second edition of the Junior Pan American Games at the Velodrome in Asuncion, Paraguay on Friday.
The two bronze medals carried T&T’s overall haul at the games to seven bronze medals, five in cycling and two in swimming.
The 19-year-old Wallace, who got women’s team sprint bronze alongside Phoebe Sandy and Kyra Williams on Tuesday night and then added another bronze in the women’s match sprint on Thursday, was only awarded her third bronze medal after Colombian Carliany Martinez was unfortunately relegated from the third spot in the keirin, moving the T&T cyclist up one position from her fourth-place finish.
Wallace, who won two historic silver medals at the Junior World Track Cycling Championships in China in August of 2024, initially missed out on a third podium finish after she crossed the line in a time of 12.116 seconds at an average speed of 59.426 km/h, only ahead of Venezuelan Jalymar Rodriguez (12.143) and fellow T&T rider Phoebe Sandy, who was sixth in 12.952 at an average speed of 55.590 km/h.
Taking the top spot and yet another gold medal was Colombian Stefany Cuadrado in 11.119 seconds at an average speed of 64.754 km/h, with countrywoman Marianis Salazar taking silver in 11.358 and Venezuela’s Carliany taking the bronze in 12.091.
However, Wallace was then elevated to the bronze medal spot ahead of Martinez, who was penalised for not holding her line during the final 200 metres of the race, handing the T&T cyclist bronze, with Sandy improving to the fifth spot.
Earlier on in the first women’s keirin semifinal, which comprised seven cyclists, Wallace, who earned two silvers (500-metre time trial and sprint) and a keirin bronze at the 2024 Pan Am Junior Track Cycling Championships, finished second in 12.219 seconds at an average speed of 58.925 km/h, trailing Colombian Marianis Salazar, who won in 12.158 at an average speed of 59.220 km/h, with Martinez securing the third and final qualification spot for the gold medal ride in 12.254 seconds at an average speed of 58.756 km/h.
In the second semifinal consisting of six riders, Sandy secured the third and final spot in 13.659 seconds at an average speed of 52.713 km/h to finish behind Cuadrado, who won in 11.987 at an average speed of 60.065, with Rodriguez second in 13.273 at an average speed of 54.245.
In the men’s keirin final, James, also 19, was third in his six-lap final in 10.877 seconds, at an average speed of 66.195 km/h to beat countryman Ryan D’Abreau, who clocked 11.162 at an average speed of 64.505 km/h, into the fourth spot.
The medal was James’s second after he combined with Jelani Nedd and Ryan D’Abreau for the bronze in the men’s team sprint, while he also placed fifth in the men’s sprint.
Racing to the gold medal was Colombia’s Nicolas Olivera in 10.429 seconds at an average speed of 69.038 km/h, while Argentina’s Matias Murillo was second in 10.844 at an average speed of 66.396 km/h, with his countryman Alejo Betique fifth in 11.176 and Venezuelan Alberto Torres sixth in 11.773.
When the keirin semifinal took place earlier in the morning, James topped the second heat in a sizzling 10.681 seconds at an average speed of 67.409 km/h to beat Murillo, who clocked 10.731 at 67.095 km/h, and Torres, who crossed the line in 10.911 at 65.988 km/h, into the second and third positions to advance to the final.
D’Abreau was third best in the first semifinal in 11.329 at an average speed of 63.554, trailing Olivera, who won in 10.746 at an average speed of 67.002, and Betique, who was second home in 10.923 at an average speed of 65.916.
T&T’s Sandy and Alexia Wilson competed in the women’s Madison, but along with the Cubans, the T&T pair did not finish the event, which was won by Colombia, followed by Chile and Venezuela.
Stuven 11th in sailing, basketballers beaten?
At San Jose Beach, Encarnacion City, T&T’s Stefan Andreas Stuven was 11th in the first heat of the one-person dinghy (ILCA 7) sailing competition with 20 points, while Kyla-Marie Morris was 18th in the one-person dinghy (ILCA 6) with 35 points.
The 3x3 basketball men’s team of Leshaun Alfred, Jason Friday, Tyrese Fields, and Josiah Marryshow were outplayed by Ecuador 11-21.
For T&T, Friday scored five points, Fields three, Alfred two, and Marryshow one in the ten-point loss, with Kevin Pazmino scoring a match-high nine points for the South Americans, with Michael Jordan Torres adding six, Kevin Preciado five, and Andre Jaramillo one.
Today, the T&T 3x3 men will come up against Chile, who edged Ecuador 19-17, in their second Group A match from 10 am and need to win by 12 points to have any chance of advancing.
Also today, the T&T’s Calypso Stickmen will face Brazil in the first fifth-to-eighth semifinal at the National Hockey Centre from 9.30 am.
Calypso stickmen
finished 4th in group play
This after the Calypso Stickmen ended at the bottom of their four-team Pool B round-robin series with three points, the same as Mexico, but with an inferior goal difference of minus seven to the Mexicans’ minus three.
In pool play, the Glen Francis-coached T&T went under to Chile 4-1 in their tournament opener but rebounded to beat Mexico 2-1 and went into their final match against Canada needing a win to reach the medal round but fell to a 6-1 defeat.
The Brazilians, on the other hand, finished third in Pool A with one point, the same as cellar-placed Paraguay, but with the better goal difference of minus-12 to the latter’s minus-25.
Paraguay and Mexico meet in the other fifth to eighth semifinals, while in the main draw Argentina, who won Pool A with a maximum nine points, faces Pool B runner-up Chile, while Canada, who topped Pool B, tackles USA, the Pool A runner-up.
Meanwhile, at the Rugby Stadium, T&T rugger men come up against Paraguay at 9.58 am, followed by Argentina at 3.35 pm and Bermuda in their three Group A matches on the day, while in tennis, T&T’s Jordan Thong and Chloe Fraser face Colombian Ana Isaza and Dominican Republic’s Arianna Estrella in their respective women’s round-of-32 singles matches, while in the women’s doubles quarterfinals, the T&T duo meet El Salvadoreans Claudia Castillo and Samirah Munoz.
In the women’s team competition T&T will meet Ecuador, Colombia and Mexico in Group Four.
Swimmer Nikoli Blackman got bronze in the men’s 50m freestyle after he also got bronze as part of the 4x100m freestyle team, which also featured Zarek Wilson, Johann-Matthew Matamoro and Zachary Blackman.
Four years ago in Cali, Colombia, T&T’s Kelsey Daniel won silver in the men’s long jump, and Tyriq Horsford won bronze in the men’s javelin at the inaugural Junior Pan Am Games.
