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Sat Dec 14, 2019 4:12 pm
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NEW YORK -- As Michelle Kwan chats with members of Figure Skating in Harlem, she sees a whole lot of herself in the young girls. Cheap USWNT Jerseys . And those girls hope to emulate Kwan. The nine-time U.S. champion and five-time world winner has been active with the inner-city club almost since its inception in 1997. She was honoured Monday night at the FSH gala for inspiring the hundreds of young girls who have been in the program. "Michelle is the perfect role model for our students with the way she conducts herself as a person, as an athlete, as an employee of the state department," FSH founder Sharon Cohen said. "Her career and life show where hard work and perseverance and talent can take you." Kwan, a two-time Olympic medallist , now serves as a senior adviser for public diplomacy and public affairs and as an envoy at the Department of State. Her husband, Clay Pell, is running for governor of Rhode Island. Kwans success in and out of sports didnt come easily, and she can recall times when she was in a similar situation to some of FSHs students. She received grants from U.S. Figure Skating and from the Womens Sports Foundation during her formative years as a skater -- at a time when Kwan and older sister Karen werent sure they could continue in the sport. "These underserved young girls get an opportunity to skate they otherwise might not have," Kwan said. "My personal background, both Karen and myself ... our parents were not well off. To be able to afford a used pair of skates and hand-me-downs in costumes and other stuff, I remember that vividly. "Imagine if one of those times you have to tell your kids, We cant afford it. I can relate to that. "And these young girls benefit so much. It really is about the skills you learn from sports. Physical activity, being with friends, teamwork, but also the discipline it takes, the hours of dedication, being able to concentrate on one thing at a time. You have to learn in life how to juggle things; being a student-athlete is the same as in life." Kwan began her day with a visit to Haverstraw Elementary, a school in suburban Rockland County, where she spoke to fifth graders who just happened to be studying her career. She stressed the importance of opportunity, education and empowerment -- all themes Figure Skating in Harlem embraces. Then Kwan headed to Wolman Rink in Central Park, where dozens of her peers were on hand to not only honour her, but to skate with the youngsters aged 6 to 18 who make up FSHs roster. Olympic medallists Scott Hamilton, Sasha Cohen, Tim Goebel, Paul Wylie, Gracie Gold, Ashley Wagner, Jason Brown and Jeremy Abbott showed up to support Kwan and Figure Skating in Harlem. "Our students learn through the education programs and our skating program of the importance of working hard and asking for help when you need it," Cohen said. "They see the changes in themselves that this leads to, in their confidence and in their abilities to achieve their goals. "Someone like Michelle gives them an incentive to work hard because they see the rewards, the personal rewards, that Michelle embodies. She exudes sportsmanship and grace and an inner drive, as well as outer success. Michelle worked to be the best she can be in all aspects, and anybody can learn from that. She carries herself with such assurance and grace. Those are traits that will help anyone succeed in this world." Wholesale USWNT Jerseys .com) - Bradley Beal deposited a season-high 33 points and John Wall posted another double-double as the Washington Wizards went on the road and beat the Houston Rockets, 104-103. Custom USWNT Jerseys . -- The Oakland Athletics and free agent right-hander Bartolo Colon have agreed to terms on a US$2 million, one-year contract, bolstering their depleted starting rotation. https://www.cheapuswnt.com/ . Im very excited about the playoffs, particularly in the Western Conference with amazing match-ups, as well as the wonderful local story in the Toronto Raptors. It should be a blast. Here are my predictions, but based upon my lousy prognostications during the NCAA Tournament, you might be better off going the other way on some of mine - particularly with the Raptors, who I hope and pray are able to win an incredibly difficult match-up.BARRIE, Ont. -- Aaron Ekblad put on a show with a four-goal night as the Barrie Colts hammered the Kingston Frontenacs 8-5 in Ontario Hockey League action. Ekblad, a potential No. 1 pick in the 2014 NHL draft, had three power-play goals and one shorthanded. Andreas Athanasiou scored twice for Barrie (21-17-3), with Jake Dotchin and Tyson Fawcett adding singles and Joseph Blandisi chipping in with four assists. Michael Moffat, Loren Ulett, Lawson Crouse, Warren Steele and Sam Bennett replied for Kingston (24-13-4). Mackenzie Blackwood finished with 31 saves for the Colts, while Frontenacs goalie Matt Mahalak stopped 34 shots. --- ICEDOGS 5 SPITFIRES 4 (OT) ST. CATHARINES, Ont. -- Aleksandar Mikulovich scored 2:35 into overtime as Niagara handed Windsor its fourth loss in a row. Graham Knott scored twice for the IceDogs (14-22-6) and Billy Jenkins and Matt Gillard scored the others. Josh Ho-Sang, Steven Janes, Cristiano DiGiacinto and Brady Vail replied for the Spitfires (25-15-2). Blake Richard turned aside 36 shots for the IceDogs, while Windsors Dalen Kuchmey stopped 30 shots. --- WOLVES 4 BULLS 2 BELLEVILLE, Ont. -- Nicolas Baptiste scored once and set up two more as Sudbury doubled up the Bulls for its fifth straight victory. Radek Faksa had a goal and an assist for the Wolves (24-10-6) and Dominik Kahun scored the other. Mark Raycroft and Niki Petti supplied the offence for Belleville (12-26-4). Troy Timpano made 29 saves for Sudbury while Charlie Graham turned aside 33-of-37 shots for the Bulls. --- PETES 6 BATTALION 2 PETERBOROUGH, Ont. -- Eric Cornel scored twice and added three assists as the Petes toppled North Bay for their first win in three outings. Nick Ritchie had a goal and two assist for Peterborough (17-21-4) while Clark Seymour, Anthony Stefano and Hunter Garlent each scored once. Matt MacLeod and Ben Thomson scored for the Battalion (20-17-5), who lost in regulation for the first time inn six outings. USWNT Jerseys China. Andrew DAgostini made 41 saves for the Petes. Jake Smith allowed four goals on 12 shots for the Petes before giving way to Brendan ONeill, who stopped 10-of-12 shots in 36 minutes of relief. --- WHALERS 3 67s 1 PLYMOUTH, Mich. -- Alex Nedeljkovic stopped 41 shots and Zach Lorentz scored twice as the Whalers downed Ottawa. Matt Mistle also scored for Plymouth (16-21-5) and assisted on both of Lorentzs goals. Dante Salituro scored the lone goal for the 67s (14-23-4). Ottawas Philippe Trudeau kicked out 29-of-31 shots in a losing cause. --- GREYHOUNDS 4 STEELHEADS 1 SAULT STE. MARIE, Ont. -- Kyle Jenkins power-play goal at 8:06 of the third period stood up as the winner as the Greyhounds defeated Mississauga. Tyler Gaudet, Sergey Tolchinksy and Andrew Fritsch also scored for Sault Ste. Marie (28-10-5). Bobby MacIntyre scored for the Steelheads (16-24-4), who were badly outshot 46-15. Brandon Halverson only had to make 14 saves for the Greyhounds. Mississaugas Spencer Martin turned away 42 shots in a losing cause. --- SPIRIT 2 KNIGHTS 0 SAGINAW, Mich. -- Jake Paterson earned a shutout with a 30-save performance for the Spirit. Paterson was key in the third period as Saginaw was outshot 14-7. Dylan Sadowy and Eric Locke scored for the Spirit (20-17-5). Jake Patterson -- not to be confused with Saginaws goaltender -- turned aside 23 shots for London (28-9-4). --- STING 6 ATTACK 3 OWEN SOUND, Ont. -- Brodie Barricks 39 saves led Sarnia to a win despite being outshot every period by the Attack. Jimmy McDowell scored twice for the Sting (14-23-5), with Anthony DeAngelo, Nickolas Latta, Nikolay Goldobin and Nikita Korostelev adding singles. Kyle Platzer, Damir Sharipzyanov and Brett Hargrave replied for Owen Sound (20-16-6). Brandon Hope was pulled from the Attacks net after allowing four goals on 19 shots. He was replaced by Jack Flinn, who stopped 12-of-13 shots. --- ' ' ' |
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