Kenrick — A Conversation with Kenrick Mark Coleman Features Amed Figueroa

The Kenrick Mark Coleman Foundation

Kenrick — A Conversation with Kenrick Mark Coleman Features Amed Figueroa

1. Tell us a little about yourself.

My name is Amed Figueroa. I am 24 years old. I was born and raised in San Ignacio.

I’m a very shy but friendly individual who gives nothing less than 100% in everything I set my mind to. I graduated from Mount Carmel High School in Benque Viejo. I’m about to finish my Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting at the University of Belize, Belmopan Campus.

I have a passion for sports and athletics. Hopefully, one day I will establish my very own fitness/sports center to uplift our young Belizean athletes.

2. You are a young, promising and vibrant Tri-athlete. What do you believe is important in this your role?

As a young Tri-athlete, I believe my role is to be a great role model to young athletes. I believe that because of my accomplishments and dedication I have received a lot of respect from individuals.

Many times people would come to me for advice about training methods and I would [willingly] help them out. So, I believe that my role is to set an example and help not only our young athletes to become the best they can, but to help my community and promote sports and fitness.

3. Tell us more about your involvement in Sports and Triathlons? Can you share a little history of your participation in this sporting discipline (growing up as a young man)?

I have always been very active in sports. From a very young age I began playing soccer, which I played for some years in a tournament which was known as Mundialito here in San Ignacio. I later moved into cycling in High School and soon after began racing at the junior level.

After my junior years passed, I stopped cycling for a while, and started running. Then, I got inspired by my uncle, Dr. Ramon Figueroa, who had been doing triathlons for a while and began to train with him. That’s when I fell in love with the sport and have been doing it for about three years now.

4. Your reputation in Triathlons speaks volumes. What are some of your greatest accomplishments in this sport?

Since I have not been involved in triathlons for long, there are a few great accomplishments which I can say I am grateful for. My first year (2014) racing in the Lion Man triathlon in Belize City, I placed third. After that year in the discipline, I was sent to a training camp in Ecuador for three weeks where I got to train with top young athletes and coaches.

In 2015, I received the news that I would be given the opportunity to receive a wildcard for Belize in the Pan American Games, held in Canada (which I represented Belize in the Triathlon segment). I also placed in the top three in the [end of the world] marathon in Placencia and got the second place award in my second year competing in the Lion man triathlon (2015).

5. What are the challenges you had over the years? Opportunities?

There are many challenges — the main challenge being time limitations. Balancing work, school, and training is really tough especially for a tri-athlete which has to [not only] find training time for cycling, but for running and swimming at the same time.

6. Can you share your experiences preparing, playing and celebrating with the teams/clubs/contests you signed with?

I have only signed with two teams and that was in my Junior Cycling days. The team I started with was [at that time] known as Crystal Cycling Club, which I rode most of my junior races with. It was a great club filled with talented young cyclists from mostly San Ignacio and Santa Elena and at the time, was one of the top junior teams. Ending my junior years, I signed with Orange Walk United (Smart) team which I rode only three races then moved up to the Elite Category.

7. What three things have you learnt in life that you would to teach the younger generation? Do you have a Belizean role model?

Three things I’ve learnt in life which I would like to teach our younger generation are:

1.) Hard work pays off! In order to accomplish all your goals you must work hard to achieve them. Nothing comes easy in life and thus you must work for it and in time it will pay off.

2.) Also, you should never give up even if things don’t turn out the way you want them, you must dust yourself off and work harder.

3.) As [per] my favorite quote “Life is not about how hard you hit, it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward”. I believe everyone can become someone great but they must believe in themselves, no matter what and never stop dreaming.

8. I know that you are currently a student at the University of Belize. Kindly share a little story of your school life ? What are the most demanding moments of school?

I am basically a [school to home] kind of person, as I had to be home in order to find time for training so I wasn’t really involved in sports. I was to be apart of the canoe team once for the University of Belize but had to dedicate myself to triathlon as the Pan American Games were coming up. But I believe school life made me a better individual and helped me to grow in order to tackle the world out here.

9. Why should young Belizeans get involved in a sporting discipline?

Generations are changing and in today’s world, everything revolves around technology. Most of our youth don’t even want to go outside and play, they rather stay inside, play video games, or go on social media all day. This can cause health problems for our youth. That is one reason I believe we should all encourage our young generations to get more involved in sports. Also, increasing our youth participation in sports could help them get out of the ‘negativity clouded’ streets and lead them to a more positive side of life, and thus, unite each other.

10. What three words do you have to say to young Belizeans?

Never stop DREAMING!