T&T cyclist Makaira Wallace won her second bronze medal in three days and T&T’s fifth overall when she defeated Argentina’s Valentina Mendez in the women’s individual sprint event, bronze medal ride at the second edition of the Junior Pan American Games continued at the Velodrome in Asuncion, Paraguay on Thursday.
The 19-year-old Wallace, who got Team Sprint bronze alongside Phoebe Sandy and Kyra Williams on Tuesday night, beat Mendez in two straight rides to wrestle her way onto the podium, alongside Colombian duo, Stefany Cuadrado (gold) and Marianis Salazar (silver), leaving Mendez in fourth.
Wallace easily fended off the Argentine in the first race of their best-of-three series, crossing the finish line .036 ahead of her opponent. Wallace’s second ride was even more impressive, as she darted past Mendez with more than 200 metres to go and the Argentine could only watch haplessly as Wallace crossed the line 1.488 seconds before her, claiming the bronze.
Earlier, Wallace was beaten in the first of her best-of-three semi final rides by her Pan American nemesis, Cuadrado, who won in 11.421 seconds, with the T&T rider trailing 0.191 seconds behind.
Needing to win the second ride to extend their semifinal to a third and decisive ride, Wallace, who won two historic silver medals at the Junior World Track Cycling Championships in China in August of 2024 came up short with Cuadrado, the 2023 UCI Junior keirin gold medal winner and silver in the sprint, taking the second ride in 12.276 seconds, and Wallace trailing by 1.370 seconds.
In the other semifinal, Salazar, won the first ride in 12.015 against Mendez and won the second with relative ease as well, in 11.747, well clear of the Argentine, who trailed in 1.377.
In the quarterfinals, Wallace, who earned two silvers (500-metre time trial and sprint) and a keirin bronze at the 2024 Pan Am Junior Track Cycling Champs, swept her compatriot Phoebe Sandy in two straight rides in the best-of-three with times of 11.693 seconds and 12.020 seconds, with the latter trailing by 0.0352 and 0.111 seconds, respectively.
Cuadrado also won her last-eight ride-off against Argentina’s Guadalupe in two rides, winning in 11.725 and 12.442, while her countrywoman Salazar, the 2023 champion, defeated Venezuelan Carliany Martinez in similar fashion, with times of 11.869 and 12.036.
In the lone quarterfinal to go the distance of all three rides, Mendez overcame being relegated to the second spot against Venezuelan Yoheris Moreno in their opening ride before taking the next two rides in 12.004 and 12.528 seconds, respectively, for a come-from-behind 2-1 win.
When the qualifiers began in the morning, Wallace and Sandy got off to perfect starts when they qualified as the fourth and fifth fastest, respectively, from a field of 15 in the individual women’s sprint, flying 200m.
Wallace clocked 11.293 seconds at an average speed of 63.756 km/h, while Sandy, 21, was timed at 11.436 at an average speed of 62.959 km/h.
Cuadrado was the top qualifier in 10.623 at an average speed of 67.777 km/h, followed by Salazar in 10.999 at an average speed of 65.460 km/h, while Mendez was third best in a time of 11.259 with an average speed of 63.949.
In the round of 16, Wallace contested heat four against Mexican Vanessa Gonzalez, the ninth fastest from the qualifying heat in 11.863, and the T&T cyclist coasted to the win with a time of 12.104, with her rival 0.125 seconds behind.
And, in heat five, Sandy faced off with Martinez, who was eighth best in the qualifying heat in 11.852, and the T&T speedster was initially second to her South American rival across the finish line.
However, Sandy was elevated to the top spot with a time of 11.865 after Martinez was relegated for entering the sprinters’ lane when Sandy was already there.
In the other round-of-16 heats, Cuadrado (12.000) defeated Mexico’s Andrea Cantu (12.056), Salazar (12.053) ousted Argentina’s Guadalupe Diaz (12.360), Mendez (12.146) dumped Cuban Keila Leal (12.468) and Moreno (11.865) overcame Chile’s Naharai Neira (12.453).
Martinez managed to secure a spot in the quarters alongside Diaz when they won their respective repechage heat in 12.317 and 12.273 seconds, respectively.
Today, Wallace and Sandy return to the Velodrome for the women’s keirin finals, while Sandy and Alexia Wilson also compete in the women’s Madison, and Jalani Nedd and Danell James face the starter in the men’s keirin.
T&T’s Calypso Stickmen will play for the fifth to eighth spot after losing to Canada 6-1 in their must-win final round-robin match in Pool B at the National Hockey Centre yesterday.
Going into the match, the T&T stickmen, beaten 4-1 by Chile before rebounding to pip Mexico 2-1 to stay in contention for a medal, sat at the bottom of the four-team table due to an inferior goal difference with all four teams on three points each and needed nothing less than a win to finish in the top two spots to reach the main draw semifinals.
However, it was not to be, as the Canadians, who fell to Mexico 3-4 in their opener before blanking Chile 2-0, got two penalty-corner goals from Kirin Robinson and one each from Satpreet Dhadda, Leighton De Souza, and Sawyer Ross, all via penalty corners as well, and a field goal from Navdip Chandi to seal a dominant display and top spot with six points and a goal difference of plus-six.
T&T, which trailed 4-0 at the half-time interval after letting in two goals each over the first two 15-minute quarters, got its lone reply from Camron Adamson in the third period.
Chile secured the runner-up spot in the pool after blanking Mexico 3-0 in the other match in Pool B to end with six points as well and a plus-four goal difference.
At the National Aquatic Centre, T&T’s Zuri Ferguson ended her competition with a sixth-place finish in heat one of the women’s 200 individual medley from lane two in two minutes, 31.03 seconds for the 17th spot overall, just one position shy of qualifying for the B final, which was secured by Puerto Rican Vanessa Alvarado in two minutes, 29.27 seconds.
Today, in the sailing competition, Stefan Andreas Stuven competes in the one-person dinghy (ILCA 7) at San Jose Beach, Encarnacion City, from 9 am, while Kyla-Marie Morris lines up in the one-person dinghy (ILCA 6), and the 3x3 basketball men’s team of Leshaun Alfred, Jason Friday, Tyrese Field, and Josiah Marryshow face Ecuador from 3 pm.
Overall, T&T has now won five medals at this year’s games, with the men’s Team Sprint cycling trio of Ryan D’Abreau, Danell James and Jelani Nedd securing bronze, while 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, bronze in the men’s javelin at the inaugural Junior Pan Am Games.
