| | |  News from Around Banderas Bay | April 2009 
XVI Sidral Aga Sports Classic in Puerto Vallarta
 Bob Cohen - PVNN
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Offering a fun-filled weekend of sports for all ages, the 16th annual Sidral Aga Sports Classic will be returning to Puerto Vallarta from May 15-17, 2009, with all but one of the original teams participating - despite the recent Swine Flu scare.
Based at the luxurious Sheraton Buganvillias Resort and Convention Center, events will be held starting with the Friday night cocktail at the resort, to the sports stadium, municipal gym, soccer fields throughout the Puerto Vallarta area, the Collage Club Bowling alley and other venues still to be determined.
All events are open to the public except for the invitation only cocktail which is hosted by the City of Puerto Vallarta, and all events are free. Be sure to get to the municipal gym very early to get a seat, especially for the final day of play.
Scheduled Events and Activities
Basketball - Basketball was how the Classic began 16 years ago and it remains the marquee event of the weekend. This year in fact it has grown to it's largest amount of participating teams. Participating will be ex- NBA players, professional players from Mexico and other countries, former Olympians for at least three countries and many ex-college and college players. The youngsters are growing in force in the basketball competition and girls will be competing for the second consecutive year.
The Open Division is scheduled to have a record 12 teams participating and one team that has been a mainstay has moved up to the Masters (over 45) division, formerly Team Aga. They will now be "Canada One" and will have many of the same faces that won the open title a number of times. Three other teams will compete in the Masters Division.
Some famous basketball players that have played on the hardwood of the Municipal Gym have been former NBA greats Jerome Kersey and Lars Hansen. Other international stars and ex-Olympic stars that should be competing are Howard Kelsey, Jeff Moore, Berry Randle, Greg Wiltjer, Bob Hieltjes, Ron Putzi and Dan Maegher.
The Open Division will have some of "Canada One's" younger players competing on a new team called "Khauna-Industrias Macra". The team will feature ex-NBA star Lafayette "Fat" Lever's son Anthony, who is the point guard for the Mexican National team. Last year's championship team from Puerto Vallarta is intact as they dominated the event. Big competition will be coming out of Guadalajara as former Mexican National Team star Enrique Zuniga and college star Horacio Llamas are slated to play for a Guadalajara team and the University of Guadalajara SUTU De G team that is reported very solid and well organized. Other teams in the Open Division are the Vancouver Nighthawks, SNTSS/BALTO, Team PJ, Pamplonas, FERACO, and a few others.
Ten youth teams will be competing as well. Six Under 14 boys teams and four Under 14 girls team will also compete. The Municipal Gym will see plenty of action and if prior years are any indication, the heat gets brutal in mid-May inside the gymnasium.
Futbal/Soccer - Reports of 150 teams will participate in youth categories in both boys and girls division and will come from many parts of Mexico for the competition. For more information and registration information, contact Armando Cosilion at www.copavallarta(at)vallartadeportes.com.
Bowling - This popular event will be held at the Collage Club. For more details and registration information, contact Jorge Batiz at jorgebatiz(at)hotmail.com.
There will be the extremely popular nightly socials that run well into the late morning again this year at sponsoring clubs in Puerto Vallarta. Seρor Frog's and the Zoo are two spots where plenty of sports celebrities and participants will be socializing. Hangovers can affect the outcome of a teams play, but a great time is always had by all.
These are the currently announced and confirmed events but events could be added. For more information, contact Veronica Alarcon the event coordinator at veronicaalarcon(at)hotmail.com or phone (52) 322 297 2400 or cell phone 322 121 9432. |
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