May 10, 2013

Sunshine State Games Events fill Mother's Day

Weekend Calendar

TALLAHASSEE - Over 1,400 Florida amateur athletes will be in action this weekend competing in five sports of Florida’s Sunshine State Games at seven Florida locations.  Now in its 34th year, Florida's Sunshine State Games offers amateur sports competitions to athletes of all ages on a variety of skill levels.  The Games are a Florida tradition and the longest-standing multi-sport festival with more than 25 sports contested annually.

The Bradenton Area Festival features the Sunshine State Games Figure Skating Championships with almost 340 figure skaters between the age of four and 70+ in competition from Friday, May 10 and Sunday, May 12 at the Ellenton Ice and Sports Complex.  This is the first year, Sunshine State Games Figure Skating has been held at the Ellenton Ice Complex. The competition schedule begins Friday morning at 8:30 a.m. and concludes Sunday afternoon at 3:20 p.m.

Among the figure skaters in action this weekend are Andrew Torgashev, of Coral Springs, a gold medalist at the 2012 South Atlantic Regional Championships, the Eastern Sectional Championships and most recently, the 2013 Prudential U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Omaha, Nebraska in January.  The 11-year old Torgashev will be skating in the Novice Short Program and Novice Free Skating events this weekend.

Former Dorothy Dodson Award winners Franchesca Chiera, of Boca Raton and Antonina Rusetkaya, of Wellington, return to compete in Sunshine State Games Figure Skating this weekend.  The award, named after veteran figure skating judge, Dorothy Dodson, recognizes the highest combined score in the Intermediate Ladies Free Skating and Short Program events.  Chiera will be skating in the senior short program and free skating events while Rusetkaya will participate in the novice short program and free skating events.

To celebrate Mother's Day weekend, Kim Park, of Bradenton, will be skating in the Sunshine State Games Figure Skating Championships with her son, Connor and daughter, Heather.  Connor and Heather will compete in pairs figure skating on Saturday afternoon at 1:30 while Kim will be on the ice later in the day for free skating at 5:20 p.m.

The 2013 Rugby Championships are part of the Bradenton Area Festival, May 11, with 18 teams competing in the Boys' High School and Men's and Women's Open Divisions at Premier Sports Campus in Lakewood Ranch. The action begins Saturday morning at 10:00 a.m. and the championship round beginning at 6:00 p.m.

Also taking place on Mother’s Day weekend are four Sunshine State Games Shooting Championships events and the Basketball and Artistic Roller-skating Championships.

Sunshine State Games Shooting events of May 11-12 include the Smallbore Conventional Prone event at the Hollywood Rifle & Pistol Club and 5 Stand at Volusia County Trap and Skeet, both on Saturday, May 11.  More than 80 sport shooters will be in competition when the IPSC (International Practical Shooting Confederation) event takes place at the Ancient City Shooting Range, in St. Augustine on Saturday, May 11.  The Hunter Pistol event closes out the weekend of shooting at the Chuluota Sportsmen’s Club on Sunday, May 12.  Onsite registration is available for the Smallbore Conventional Prone, Hunter Pistol and Trap and 5 Stand events on Saturday and Sunday morning.

The Sunshine State Games Basketball Championships will be played in Alachua County with almost 60 boy’s and girl’s teams in competition ranging in age from 10 to 18 years old.  Games will be played at Santa Fe High School in Alachua, Buchholz High School, Abundant Grace Community Church, Gainesville High School, Oak Hall School, the Easton Complex in Newberry, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center, Santa Fe College, Competition begins on Friday evening, May 10 at 6:00 p.m. and wraps up on Sunday afternoon with championship games.

Finally, the Sunshine State Games Artistic Roller-skating Championships will be spinning on four wheels at the Semoran Skateway in Casselberry. The schedule for Saturday, May 11 features the Junior and Senior World Class events as well as the Tiny Tot competition. The Sunday, May 12 schedule includes the majority of the youth and adult events.

The Sunshine State Games Calendar of Events continues the following weekend of May 17-19, with the first of three Sunshine State Games Lacrosse tournaments to be held at Pine Trails Park in Parkland.  More Sunshine State Games Lacrosse follows at the Alachua County Festival on June 8-9 and in Wesley Chapel, June 29-30.

Registration is currently ongoing for the Alachua County Festival, June 7-9, the Water Polo Championships, June 14-16 in Coral Springs and the Polk County Festival, June 21-23.  Visit www.flasports.com for more information on all events of Florida’s Sunshine State Games.