IAN Gonsalves became the first driver from Guyana to compete in international powerboat racing yesterday, driving for French team Maverick in a Moore hull.

The 42-year-old who now resides in the Dominican Republic made his debut in the F4-S series last evening in the Grand Prix of Portugal and up to press time he had placed eighth out of ten in race one, with a second race still to go.

In Free Practice on Friday he clocked a best lap of 57.69, 5.08 seconds off Tom Chiappe’s best time.

Gonsalves hopes to compete in the majority of the races. However he is experiencing difficulty obtaining a visa to enter Britain for the London race.