Greene replaces injured Mendes in Caribbean Championships Cycling team

Guyana’s final five-man team for the Caribbean Elite and Under-23 Road Cycling Championships has been confirmed, with Andre Greene replacing the injured Alexis Mendes for the October 9-12 event in the Dominican Republic.

The Guyana Cycling Federation (GCF) had initially selected Briton John, Ajani Cutting, Aaron Newton, Segun Hubbard and Mendes following a council meeting to reduce its original nine-man squad to five riders.
However, Mendes sustained an injury while competing at the Tour de Bim in Barbados over the weekend and will no longer make the trip. Greene, of Kaieteur Attack Racing Cycle Club, has since been called into the squad as his replacement.

The final team will therefore comprise national road race champion John, national Under-23 champion Cutting, Newton, Hubbard and Greene.
The GCF was forced to revise its original selection after the Caribbean Cycling Union advised that Guyana could not use places allocated for female cyclists to accommodate additional male riders.
Guyana had initially identified nine male cyclists for the championships (five Elite riders and four Under-23 competitors) and had hoped to use its full allocation of 10 places after no female cyclists were selected.

However, the CCU informed the federation that the allocation was divided evenly, with five positions for males and five for females, and that the unused female places could not be reassigned.
The original Elite selection consisted of John, Mendes, Greene, Hubbard and Devendra Sahadeo, while Cutting headed the Under-23 group alongside Newton, Sidwell Sandy and Mark Lewis.
Following the CCU ruling, the GCF council met and selected John, Cutting, Newton, Hubbard and Mendes before the latter’s injury forced another change.
GCF President Nigel London will accompany the cyclists as team manager. London is also expected to attend the Caribbean Cycling Union meeting in his capacity as Federation president while in the Dominican Republic.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport has provided financial assistance towards Guyana’s participation and has approved bicycles for John and Sandy.
The Ministry has also committed to providing two additional bicycles during the next year as part of its support for the development of local cycling.