(TSR) -- This past weekend, the state of New York saw the coming of the 24th Empire State Winter Games held in Lake Placid, New York, home of the 1932 and 1980 Winter Olympics. The Games saw youth, experience, hopefuls of the future and dreamers a like showoff their talents in the Adirondacks.
Nearly 1400 athletes from the eastern region of the United States took part in 27 events from 10 categories.
With the Winter Olympics just two years away, many got a glimpse of a possible few that may show up in Torino, Italy and beyond.
“We try to do these games in Olympic style,” Fred Smith, director of the Empire State Games, said. The idea, according to Smith, is to allow athletes in one sport to watch the other athletes in their respective sports and to enjoy the comaraderie in a festive atmosphere.
In the main events the winners were: Robbie Miller in the Super G; Jamie Aurino, Giant Slalom; Grace Slack, Slalom; Linda Demaine, Biathlon; Jody Barton, Skeleton; Ian Hogan, Bobsled; Laura Dewitt in freestyle and Anna Gorbold in Cross Country Skiing; Kristina Nolte, Figure Skating; Erin Hamlin, Luge and Evan Bliss, Ski Jumping. In women’s and men’s Nordic combined, Janne Rand and Matt Delaney were the respective winners.
A showcase for the future? Maybe. “In some cases it is, in others it’s the pinnacle of their careers,” Smith said. “Some do go on to bigger things.”
And some do. According to Smith, twenty-four former Empire State Games’ athletes competed in the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic games.“But for the majority of the athletes, it’s the biggest thing they’re in.”
One of the more spectacular sports showcased in the Adirondacks was ski jumping. Sixteen year old Evan Bliss of Lake Placid, took the Scholastic category (18 and under) for the second year in a row in weather not exactly ideal for jumping. Temperatures soared into the high 30s, which made for slow skiing and forced the jumpers to start from the very top of the in-run.
TSR -- (Bliss and Graves)
The highlight of Bliss’ young career was a finish of 41st in last year’s World Junior championships. More importantly, it was good enough to be the top American.
Another promising youngster is Willie Graves of Putney, Vermont, who finished third behind Bliss. This past year, Graves made the world junior team.
“It will take consistent long-term training for one of them to break through,” Larry Stone, ski jumping coach out of Lake Placid, said.
More succinct was Casey Colby, a veteran jumper of 21 years and a 1998 Olympian. Colby now coaches at the Park City, Utah jumping complex.
Asked what it would take for an American to break through on the world scene, “More ski jumpers," Colby said. Indeed, some European countries dwarf the United States in numbers of jumpers.
Also, “more support for jumpers over twenty-one,” Colby continued. “Once you stop producing a little they (U.S. Ski Team) start looking for someone else.”
Filed by J.D. Long
