Folders |
Young Track Stars and National Champs Share Spotlight in BrooklynPublished by
Third Preliminary Meet of 41st Annual Colgate Women’s Games Features Distance, Diversity and Another RecordBrooklyn, NY – Among the thousands of participants competing in the nation’s largest track and field series for women this season, some of the youngest stars are enjoying attention often reserved for High School champion athletes. Distance and diversity were buzzwords at this weekends’ third preliminary meet of the 41st annual Colgate Women's Games, where Sunday’s competitions featured two elementary school girls all the way from Georgia; and a large contingent of newcomers from a wide variety of cultural backgrounds enjoying friendly competition.
Eight year-old third-grader Ron-niah Wright and 10 year-old fifth-grader Rasunek Tyler-Thompson drove with their moms from Atlanta to Brooklyn for the third consecutive week, where Tyler-Thompson, won first place in the Elementary B 55 meters in 7.76, and Wright placed fourth in both the Elementary A 55 meters (8.42) and the 200 meters (32.11).
The girls were asked how they feel about driving 14 hours to run for about 8 seconds, and shrugged it off. “I get to see my aunt in Brooklyn,” Ron-niah said. “Well, I try to make it in under 8 seconds, or maybe it would’t be worth it,” Rasunek added with a laugh.
On Saturday in the Mid School division competition, Brooklyn’s My'
Some of the nation’s best hurdlers faced off against each other at Friday’s High School competition, where first through sixth place performances would all likely qualify as top place finishes at most major indoor meets this season.
Brooklyn’s Alyssa Sandy, a Junior at Paul Robeson, remained undefeated after her season’s best performance of 8.15, and New Jersey’s Tia Livingston of Union Catholic High School returned from a seventh place finish last week, to finish a close second in 8.25. The battle for third place was also close as Sophia Myers of Queens High School finished in 8.49 just ahead of Mahendra McWhite of Dieruff High School, PA, who placed fourth in 8.55.
Meet Director Cheryl Toussaint said, “We continue to attract so much young talent because there are simply very few competitions available for young athletes; and we are so proud of the diversity that we see each week at Pratt. We strive to make all of our competitions friendly and welcoming experiences, and the fruits of our success are the new friendships we see being made and nurtured.”
Next week’s final preliminary meet, followed by a semi-finals at Pratt will determine who will compete at the Armory in New York City on Saturday, February 7, 2015, where trophies and educational grants-in-aid from Colgate-Palmolive Company are awarded to top place finishers in each age/grade division.
The Colgate Women’s Games have produced several Olympians, hundreds of age/grade division national champions, and countless changed lives. Each year, High school participants are among the most heavily recruited athletes by colleges and universities across the nation. Coaches, recruiters, athletes and fans can follow scores each week at Colgategames.com.
Tickets to the Armory finals are free by request at Colgategames.com.
More news |
