Recreation and Sports
The University of Belize Recreation and Sports Department is designed to foster wide participation in learning and playing of sports as a foundation to a healthy lifestyle. Students are encouraged to learn a sport, practice for fun and develop a positive habit to take with them after graduation to remain healthy as they age. The department organizes sport classes that are easy to participate in without registration nor payment. These non-credit courses provide students with the foundation they need to play and practice. In addition, the department organizes small, competitions called intramurals or competitions between campuses. In 2023 the university will rebuild its Varsity Sport Program by creating elite, competitive teams in
Basketball, Canoeing, Football and Volleyball. Those teams will
represent U.B. in national and international sport competitions.
The university has a long history of non-competitive and competitive sports which all came to a halt during the COVID19 Pandemic of 2020. Currently the university is rebuilding the sports and recreation department from the ground up and students are encouraged to make the most of what is offered each semester.
As of August 2022, students will be able to take short training seminars, participate in intramural competitions and have fun playing any of the growing number of recreation activities being made available. These include:
Sport Classes Activities
Baseball
Volleyball
Football
Track and Field
Intramurals
Volleyball
Basketball
Futsal (starting in January of 2023)
Baseball (starting in January of 2023)
Recreation
Badminton
Table Tennis
Weight Training
Chess
Board Games
Recreation Center on the Main Campus
Students on the Belmopan Campus can use the weight room for training or losing
weight. They can also play table tennis, volleyball or basketball at the multi-purpose Recreation Center. Students can also play badminton or chess in the student lounge in
the Recreation Center.
Track and Field
Currently the UB Track and Field Athletes train under coach Alvin Tillett who is a UB
graduate and past elite university athlete. Students who already have a foundation in
track and field and who would like to try out for the UB track team, they can contact
us using the button below for details of how to try out for the team.
Recreation and Sports on the Distance Campuses
Students on the other campuses can contact the Student Affairs Coordinators or Campus Administrators for access to the sporting and recreation services available on those campuses. Students can play football, basketball and board games on the Punta Gorda Campus. The Central Farm Campus has a weight room, football, basketball and volleyball available.
The UB Relathon
Every year the Recreation Department organizes the UB Relathon which is a
competitive road relay. The ladies compete against the men in a long-distance road race that sees the men run from the Central Farm Campus to the Engineering Campus in Belize City (62 miles). Each runner runs one mile at a time and can run up to four miles during the race but never more than one mile at a time. The ladies start at the Belmopan Campus and run to the Engineering Campus in Belize City (45 miles). Excitement looms every year as the entire university community comes out to see if the ladies can hold off the men or if the men will meet and pass them. The race started as a tradition at The Belize Technical College, one of the pre-amalgamation institutions of higher learning and has only stopped in the cases of national emergencies. It was brought into UB since its establishment in 2000 and continued every year until the pandemic put it on hold for two years. We all look forward to the next Relathon in 2023 during the dry and windy weather before Easter.
The La Ruta Maya River Challenge
Our participation in the La Ruta Maya river challenge began in one of the five institutions that became the University of Belize (UB) – the University College of Belize (UCB) with male and co-ed teams. This tradition has continued with UB. From 2000 to 2002, the team paddled in the environmental category since there was no intramural category. In 2003 the Canoe Association of Belize introduced the intramural category which was designed specifically for student athletes. The UB Black Jaguars won this category from then until 2007 back to back. Since 2000, there has always been a Black Jaguars team in the La Ruta Maya River Challenge and the entire university community looks forward
to cheering on our team along the banks of the Belize River anywhere between San
Ignacio and Belize City. In the August 2022 semester, the Recreation and Sport Unit will put out a call for paddlers to prepare for the 2023 race.