Professional cyclist, 24-year-old Alanzo Nicholas Greaves is the last of five children for his parents, Gladys Gayral and Cornel Greaves. His other siblings are Sharon, Delight, Ronald and his late brother Paul who died of a brief illness a few years ago.
The father of one attended the JE Burnham Nursery School then went to FE Pollard Primary School. He graduated and was rewarded a place at Queenstown Secondary but later transferred to the Business School where he wrote the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC).
This young man grew up in Garnett Street, Kitty, Georgetown, and had a very interesting upbringing. He described his childhood as fun and exciting. He was exposed to all forms of sport while growing up but felt a love for cycling.
During his primary education, he successfully represented his school zone at the National School’s Championship for a number of years. Whilst at the event, his eyes caught on a group of cyclists and thought that one day he would be involved in the sport. With some encouragement from his family, he became the owner of a BMX bicycle and rode around his community on a regular basis. Upon seeing his potential, his mother bought a racing bike for him which was the defining moment of his career.
After a month of intense training, his brother-in-law who was a national rider took him under his wing and within a month, Greaves was ready for the racetrack.
The first race that he participated in, he rode his way to second place. He was only 15 years old at the time. Being sweetened, he continued to ride and was successful in copping the top spot in the school boys’ category.
Although, being new in the game, he knew that he had to ride harder in order to succeed, and as he rode he got better and stronger.
Reminiscing on the time he started to ride, he said that it was much easier compared to today. Now, he added there are more riders, more races, more cash prizes and more competition. Sponsorship has also grown over the years.
The talented cyclist who recently tied the knot started his career with the Roraima Bikers Club but left in 2007 and joined the Cartlon Wheelers Club. After spending a year with the Wheelers, he rejoined Roraima Bikers Club.
Greaves has participated in several local competitions including the National Three Stage in 2009 which he won. He also won the National Championship and the National Five Stage in 2007 – two of his greatest accomplishments as a young rider. Apart from the big competition, he continued to participate in the races held at the National Park, organised by national cycling coach, Hassan Mohamed.
In 2013, he placed third in the Digicel Breast Cancer awareness race; fourth in the National Three Stage; second in the National Five Stage and second in the National Championships.
He also participated in a number of overseas stints beginning with a few in the United States. There, he secured two first place wins, one second, one fourth, one fifth; a tenth; a twelfth and came in the 55th spot in one of the bigger races. The young man also participated in the Caribbean Championships held in Curacao where he placed 46th out of over 200 riders. In addition, he rode in several races with his teammates in Suriname.
In five years time, he hopes to be the proud father of five children, but on a career level, he is optimistic in participating in the Olympic Games in Brazil in 2016.
In order to qualify for the Olympics, there are a number of races that he has to be a part of including the Central American Games in Mexico; the Commonwealth Games in Scotland and the South American Games to be held in Chile.
His greatest role model and inspiration is professional cyclist Mark Cavendish. Being a part of cycling at a young age, he knew Cavendish to be the best sprinter in the Tour De France competition. He also had the opportunity to meet the rider once in India in 2010 and he described the moment as a “dream come through”
Greaves advises young men to stay disciplined and be serious if they want to make cycling their career. He sees it as a sport that keeps you fit and makes you a disciplined individual. He also added that they must be ready to spend a lot, noting that the game is costly.
As a national cyclist, he is hopeful that Guyana will have a velodrome (National Cycling Track) claiming that there are new cyclists emerging on a daily basis.
Finally, Greaves thanked his sponsors who have seen his potential and backed him, and he is thankful for their continuous support over the years. These include Digicel, Bounty Farm Limited, Toucan Industries, Kevin Jeffrey and family, Compton Persaud (Rigg Plus), Carl Iniss (Street Styles Boutiques) and most importantly, his wife and family, among others.