Annual STAR Walk, Roll & Stroll on May 6th
February 17, 2012 by Linda Abel ·
SHS News Flash
From: Laura Blair (sometimes known as the Wreckers #1 Fan)
To: SHS Sports Teams’ Coaches
I need your help by publicizing the Annual Star Walk, Roll & Stroll on May 6th. You can help by passing the information below on to your team’s Web Master:
Our own Laura Blair is at it again, working for a great cause, “STAR, INC.” The 7th Annual STAR Walk, Roll & Stroll will take place on Sunday, May 6th at Sherwood Island Park.
STAR serves more than 500 area families. Of those, more than 130 families receive early intervention services for their infants and young children. STAR supports 11 group homes and 16 apartments, assisting 87 individuals with independent living. STAR provides training and job placement to 236 adults.
For more information, visit the Star <a href=”http://www.starinc-lightingtheway.org/”>webpage</a>.
To donate, please go to: <a href=”http://www.active.com/donate/starwalk2012/laurasstars”>Active.com</a>
Last year, I raised $5,500 for this worthy cause. The SHS community led the charge with $4,000 in contributions! So, let’s get going Wreckers and support this worthy cause.
MSG Varsity Covers Norwalk Victory
January 31, 2012 by Linda Abel ·
Click to view the story on the MSG Varsity website.
Thanks for Voting for Team of the Week
January 18, 2012 by Editor ·
Thanks for all who voted for the Staples Boys Swimming & Diving Team. We are the FCIAC Team of the Week.
Vote for Staples Alumna Swimmer Liz Fry
November 16, 2011 by Ronald Wimer ·
Elizabeth Fry
Westport resident and record-shattering open water swimmer Elizabeth Fry has been nominated for the 2011 World Open Water Swimming Woman of the Year.
The nomination recognizes Fry, 52, for “her dynamic spirit in helping others realize their open water dreams while she realizes her own potential in some of the most difficult swims in the world,” according to the sponsor of the World Open Water Swimming Association (WOWSA) awards, Open Water Source. In particular, the nomination recognizes Fry for the two “double crossings” she swam in 2011.
Last June, she set the double crossing record and became the only person to complete the unprecedented 35-mile Ederle Swim, swimming from Manhattan Island to New Jersey, and back. Her time of 11 hours, 5 minutes set the standard for both men and women, young and old. She then became the oldest person to complete the 42-mile double crossing of the English Channel in 24 hours, 39 minutes, with her return journey faster than the outgoing swim from England to France. This was her third attempt to complete the two-way crossing of the iconic Channel, having previously accomplished five successful one-way crossings. She wrapped up her 2011 season with a 13 hour, 25 minute, 25-mile crossing from Vermont, U.S.A. to Québec, Canada.
In addition, Fry has served as the long-standing director of the 25K Swim Across the Sound, one of the nation’s largest open water swimming events, which has raised millions of dollars for the St. Vincent’s Medical Center Foundation.
Fry trains with the Westport Swim Club, a Connecticut Masters team, which is coached by Staples Girls Swim coach Michael Laux. She began her swimming career in Long Beach, New York and attended Camp Akomak, a swim camp in Canada. As a teen in Westport, she swam for the Westport Weston Family Y Water Rats and Staples High School swim teams. Fry attended college at the University of Connecticut, where she was awarded the John Squires Award for the most improved swimmer as a freshman while earning a degree in Chemistry, and earned graduate degrees at Fordham University.
About the WOWSA Award
According to Open Water Source, the WOWSA award is meant to honor not necessarily the best athlete, but the individual who best embodies the spirit of open water swimming; possesses the sense of adventure, tenacity and perseverance for which open water swimmers are known; and has most positively influenced the world of open water swimming in 2011. This year’s award nominees include twelve women from nine countries. Awards also are given for Man of the Year and Performance of the Year.
Voting takes place online at Open Water Swimming from November 1 to December 31. The winner will be announced and honored on January 1 at the Global Open Water Swimming Conference.
For more information on Elizabeth Fry, visit here.
Click to cast your vote.
Whose Game Is It, Anyway?
October 5, 2011 by Ronald Wimer ·
The Westport PTA Council and the Westport Weston Family Y are hosting a community conversation about youth sports with Dr. Richard Ginsburg at Bedford Middle School at 7:00 pm on Thursday, October 20, 2011.
Dr. Richard Ginsburg is a faculty member at the Harvard Medical School and the co-director of the PACES (Performance and Character Excellence Institute of Sports Psychology) program at Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Ginsburg provides talks and consultations nationally to youth, high school and collegiate athletic programs. He is the co-author of Whose Game Is It, Anyway?, a comprehensive guide that helps parents ensure a positive sports experience for their children.
“Travel teams, early specialization, daily practices and competitive tryouts are dominating our recreational and school sports programs across the country at all levels,” says Dr. Ginsburg. “While there is much attention given to the pressures our sporting culture places on athletes, parents are in need of support to guide their young athletes through these challenging times and endeavors, particularly as athletes move from one developmental stage to the next.”
In this presentation to parents of young athletes, volunteer parent-coaches and professional teacher-coaches, Dr. Ginsburg will review what he terms “The Three-Step-Approach” (Know Your Child, Know Yourself and Know Your Child’s Environment) as a means to help parents navigate this unpredictable and demanding sports environment in the service of helping their children achieve to their best ability while developing strong and lasting character.
The one-hour presentation will be followed by a 30-minute open Q&A session. Space is limited, so please click to reserve a seat.
For further information about Dr. Ginsburg, please visit his website whosegameisitanyway.com.
MSG Varsity Covers Swim Across the Sound
August 30, 2011 by Editor ·
MSG Varsity (channel 14 on Optimum Cable) did a story on the the Staples High School Swim Across the Sound team.
Staples Finished Fifth in Swim Across the Sound
August 7, 2011 by Editor ·
The Staples High School Swim Across the Sound team finished fifth among relay teams and fifth overall in the 24th annual Swim Across the Sound Marathon, which took place on Saturday, August 6. The team, which was captained by Joss Abel, crossed the Sound in just over six hours (6:05:02) and was one of 35 relay teams that made the 15.5 mile journey from Port Jefferson, N.Y. to Captain’s Cove Seaport in Bridgeport.
The team included Joss’s sister Verity, his brother Larry, Gabrielle Wimer and Kyle Bacon. Gabrielle, Joss and Kyle will be seniors at Staples and co-captains of their respective SHS swim teams this year. Verity will be a sophomore and Larry, who graduated from Staples in 2010, is entering his sophomore year at Susquehanna University, where he swims for the Crusaders.
The Staples High School team raised over $11,000 for the St. Vincent’s Swim Across the Sound Foundation. (Last year the Staples team placed 14th, and raised over $10,000.) The St. Vincent’s Foundation provides cancer education, screening and prevention programs for the greater Bridgeport community regardless of whether people have health insurance or not. “We are fortunate to live in Westport, with all its facilities,” said Joss. “But right next door is Bridgeport, where 21 percent of residents live below the poverty line.”
The Staples team swam in honor of Masato Sakaguchi, the four-year-old brother of Fairfield swimmers Miki, Tomoya, Toshi and Yumi. Masato passed away last July after a two-year battle with brain cancer. Verity described him as a “ray of sunshine.” Gabrielle said that they lost a member of their “swim family” when Masato passed away. The Staples swimmers and the Sakaguchi siblings have swum together for years on the Westport Weston Family Y’s Water Rat Swim Team.
The swim also was a celebration of Paul Abel’s good health. The father of the Abel siblings recently passed his five-year cancer-free milestone after a bout with colon cancer.
Click to view photos of the Swim Across the Sound.
Photo above shows, left to right: Gabrielle, Joss, Larry, Kyle and Verity.
Fall 2011 Water Polo Season
July 30, 2011 by Editor ·
Hi Everyone:
Given that some swimmers who never played water polo may be interested in the sport, we are posting this information on the Swim and Dive site.
Welcome (almost) to the 2011 SHS Boys Water Polo season. We’ve made progress in the past few months on scheduling practice times, organizing volunteers and setting the game schedule. We’d like to share this information so you can begin planning for the season.
Please be sure to sign up for e-news and updates by entering your email address on the right hand side of the Staples Boys Water Polo website.
Theo will be returning as head coach. Brandon Arias will be assisting 4 days per week.
We hope to begin captains’ practices the week of 8/22. A location is not yet finalized but we will let you know as soon as we can.
Try outs will be Saturday 8/27 from 12:30 to 2:30. The playing season will run through November 12th, followed by a banquet, date to be announced.
We will have our kick-off parents’ meeting at the same time as try outs at the school, location TBD.
Nussbaum’s will host a season opening pool party at their home on Saturday 9/10.
Our practice schedule is as follows:
Monday – Friday: 5:30PM – 7:00PM
Saturday: 7AM – 8:30AM
Saturday: 4PM – 6PM
Our game schedule, still subject to some changes, is attached.
Daniel and David are working on suits and team apparel, and plan to have samples and order forms for the team kick-off meeting.
Thanks to all our volunteers: Communications and website management – Gloria Nussbaum; Fundraising – Jeanne Bowles; Bake Sales – Julie Haroun; Apparel – Lee DeMonico; Pasta Dinners – Joan Siegel; Travel Bus Sandwiches and Snacks – Jocelyn Armstrong; Senior Day – Jodi Reiner; Banquet – Gloria Nussbaum & Joan Siegel; Finance – Rick Yu.
We are still in need of volunteers to write articles and submit them to the newspapers, to take photos and film games, and to prepare the yearbook for the year-end banquet.
Let us know if you have any questions. We’re looking forward to a great season.
Gloria Nussbaum glorianuss@optonline.net
Chuck Katter charles.katter@mssb.com
Wreckers Swim Across the Sound
June 28, 2011 by Editor ·
For the second year in a row, Staples Swimming has created a relay team that will Swim Across the Sound.
On August 6, 2011, five current and past Staples swimmers will participate in St. Vincent’s Hospital’s Swim Across the Sound, swimming 15.5 miles to raise money to support cancer patients.
Last year, the Staples team placed 14th with a four-person team and raised over $10,000. This year, the team has expanded to five swimmers who hope to beat both those achievements.
The Staples Swim Across the Sound team includes:
- Verity Abel
- Gabrielle Wimer
- Joss Abel
- Laurence Abel
- Kyle Bacon
The Staples team will swim in honor of Masato Sakaguchi – the four-year-old brother of Fairfield swimmers Miki, Tomoya, Toshi, and Miku — who passed away last July after a two-year battle with brain cancer. The Staples swimmers hope that one day children like Masato will be able to beat their cancer. That is why they ask you to support them. They would greatly appreciate any donation that you can make (no amount is too small).
Please click to contribute to their effort by credit card.
Thank you for your support.
Congratulations on great season!
March 22, 2011 by Marcia Goodgame ·
Staples placed fifth out of twenty teams at the CIAC class LL Championships, and ninth out of fifty-two (ninety-five total) swimming and diving teams at the CIAC Open. Complete results can be found at http://www.casciac.org/bswim.shtml. Congratulations to everyone!
Also, congratulations to the following:
Zachary Slater, Cory Bacon, and Nathaniel Boley have been named to the Norwalk Hour All-AreaTeam.
Cory Bacon and Nathaniel Boley have been named to the Connecticut Post All-Star Team.
Coach Jeff Schare has been recognized as the boys swimming Coach of the Year.
