The Belizean sports family doesn't have much of a history of keeping records and lionizing past stars, but a new exhibit at the Museum of Belize hopes to change that. The exhibit catalogues the greatness and beauty of many past legends. We were at the opening today.
Hon. Mark Espat, Minister of Culture
"Our display takes into account various sports: football, basketball, tennis, cricket, cycling, boxing, softball. This walk down memory lane resurrects the great football teams of the south, it outlines the history of the cross country cycle races, it revisits the golden girls of softball, takes us into the ring with boxers like Ludwig Lightburn and David 'Kid' Daker, it captures the glorious evenings at the old Parish Hall and the old 'Nashus court, it reveals the origins of the Silver Cup of cricket starting back in 1890 and the Newtown Tennis Club of 1912."
That's a lot of ground to cover, but the exhibit does it stylishly. And it's all here, whether you want to see the belt and sainted boxing gloves of champ David Dakers or photos of a young Billy Musa.
Billy Musa,
"Yeah it brings back memories for me. I've been playing tennis for the past fifty add years and I remember the championships that I've won in the '60s and '70s, so it really brought back memories to me."
And one of Belize's greatest multi disciplinary sportsmen, Sonny Meighan, who excelled in a variety of sports, says its good to bring back memories of these old timers and their much forgotten glory days.
Sonny Meighan,
"Sometimes it's a bit of a surprise to me that some young kids say to me, 'Mr. Meighan I didn't know you played basketball,' and then I can't understand why they don't know but then I stopped playing thirty five years ago, there was no way they were going to know, and so the parents I guess must have told them something. So this is great for me, I'm glad a lot of the young athletes are knowing now who the pioneers were."
And when you see flag bearer Sonny Meighan and team manager Net Vasquez leading the team at the '68 Olympics, you get a sense that these old masters will never forget what it was like.
Sonny Meighan,
"Yes I am nostalgic, I am nostalgic and when I was asked to find some old pictures I said, 'what should I give them, what should I show them.' Those were good days I tried to get the best photographs that show what I used to play a long time ago."
Billy Musa,
"Well I wish I those days could come back again."
And today as old timers perused the collection of their greatest days, one lesson comes out clearly, practice, practice, practice.
Billy Musa,
"I would like to encourage all the younger people to definitely take part in some kind of sport because its very healthy, its healthy for the mind and the body, and I think more Belizeans should partake in sports."
Sonny Meighan,
"Keep training, keep practicing and don't think that after one or two years you will be MVP or the best, it takes a while because there is a lot of competition among the youngsters nowadays, more opportunities, and I find it hard for them now to play four or five sports which we did in our days because you have to sort of specialize in one but I have to encourage them and I would say my advice would be to train hard and be dedicated."
The exhibit is open to the public.
