CONTINENTAL cyclist Geron Williams is keen on making a successful defence of his National Sports Commission (NSC) Independence Three-Stage Road Race junior title, when the event wheels off on Saturday from Corriverton, Berbice.

The 17-year-old who will be celebrating his 18th birthday on May 23 told Chronicle Sport he is eagerly looking forward to this year’s event since he is out to prove that he has what it takes to be champion Olympic material.

The somewhat introvert cyclist said he is not taking his other junior counterparts lightly, but would be in attacking mode throughout the 169-mile course of the race.

Williams, who participated in the 2008 Beijing Youth Camp, first competed in the three-stage event in 2005 when he was just 13 years plus.

That year, he completed the first stage (Corriverton to New Amsterdam), a distance of just over 46 miles and while contesting the second stage (Rosignol to Georgetown), his coach George McKenzie advised his father (Glenn Williams) to withdraw from the stage while passing through Mahaicony, since to allow him to complete it would have been too gruelling for his young heart, a decision that his father accepted.

In 2006, Williams completed the first two stages and placed 12th overall going into the final stage (Kara Kara Linden to Georgetown) and once again, his father did not allow him to enter the stage (three) since the hills on the Linden Highway were too tough for him to climb.

In 2007, Williams finished the first stage with the leading bunch and received a bunch time, but in the second stage, he finished with the second bunch and dropped some points, making him 10th overall going into the final stage.

It was during this stage that he excelled and finished fifth overall.

Last year, race organiser and national cycle coach Hassan Mohamed introduced a junior category for the first time and Williams came out on top.

He finished among the first bunch in stage one, finished in the second bunch in stage two and was second overall in stage three, making him first among the juniors.

With this in mind, cycling enthusiasts can expect pace and determination throughout the entire three stages of this year’s event.