More than 700 Sunshine State Games athletes will be in the water and on the archery range this weekend in Gainesville and Lakeland with competitions in Swimming, Synchronized Swimming and Archery.
The Games continue through the remainder of the month of June with nine upcoming sports being held in six different Florida communities.
The three sports of this weekend, Archery, Swimming and Synchronized Swimming, are all original sports of the Sunshine State Games dating back to 1980. The Sunshine State Games, now in its 39th year, are the longest continuously-running State Games in the U.S.
Among the more than 120 archers on the range this weekend is the 2017 Female Athlete of the Year, Angelica Ramirez, from Melbourne, who will be honored at Sunday’s archery competition to be held at the Easton Newberry Complex, in Alachua County.
Ramirez has been shooting in the Games since 2011 and won a pair of freestyle gold medals in 2017. Her record-setting score of 889 in the 900 Freestyle Round was the overall highest of all competitors. She also won a gold medal in the 720 Freestyle Round.
Also pulling back the bow string in the Sunshine State Games this weekend is Andre Shelby, of Jacksonville, a gold-medal winning member of the 2016 U.S. Paralympic Team. A veteran of the U.S. Navy, Shelby also won a pair of medals at the 2017 World Archery Para Championship in Beijing.
Stepping onto the blocks at the Dwight H. Hunter Northeast Pool in Gainesville for the SSG Swimming Championships are more than 350 swimmers, representing 11 Florida teams.
Leading the way is Gainesville’s Gator Swim Club with 118 swimmers, including the 2016 SSG Male Athlete of the Year, Trevor McGovern. In March, McGovern swam in the National Club Swimming Association Junior National Championships in Orlando. He has also posted four top 10 times of the 2017-18 year on the Florida Swim Club rankings in 15-16 year old events.
Over 250 Synchronized Swimmers representing 16 teams will be in action at the Gandy Pool in Lakeland Friday through Sunday.
A pair of swimmers from the Tampa YMCA Synchro team will continue their summer, following the Sunshine State Games, as members of the USA Synchro 12-and-Under National Team.
11-year old Jennah Hafsi, of Tampa and 12-year-old Lily Weber, will train in Las Vegas with the National team and compete in the Union Americana de Natacion (UANA) Artistic Swimming Championships, in Riverside, California in August, according to Camile Young-Albrecht, Head Coach of the Tampa YMCA Synchro team. Of the 10 qualifying for the team, Hafsi was ranked number one among the selected swimmers. It is her second year as a member of the 12-and-under National team.
Hafsi has been a member of the Tampa YMCA team for five years and Weber is in her third year on the team. Hafsi has been competing in the Sunshine State Games since 2013 when she was in the 8-and-under Novice Solo event as a six-year old. She and Weber won a gold medal in the 2016 Sunshine State Games in the Junior Olympic Duet event.
SSG Schedule for June 8-10
Friday, June 8
8:30 a.m. – SSG Swimming, Dwight Hunter Northeast Pool, Gainesville
11:30 a.m. – SSG Synchronized Swimming (Novice Division), Gandy Pool, Lakeland
Saturday, June 9
8:30 a.m. – SSG Swimming, Dwight Hunter Northeast Pool, Gainesville
8:30 a.m. – SSG Synchronized Swimming (Intermediate Division), Gandy Pool, Lakeland
9:00 a.m. – SSG Archery, Easton-Newberry Archery Center (720 Round) & Gator Bowman Archery Range (Field Events), Gainesville
Sunday, June 10
8:30 a.m. – SSG Swimming, Dwight Hunter Northeast Pool, Gainesville
8:30 a.m. – SSG Synchronized Swimming (Junior Olympic/Masters & Open Divisions), Gandy Pool, Lakeland
9:00 a.m. – SSG Archery, Easton-Newberry Archery Center (900 Round) & Gator Bowman Archery Range (3-D Events), Gainesville
Upcoming Sunshine State Games Events during the Month of June
For competition and registration information visit www.sunshinestategames.com
June 16-17, 2018
Sunshine State Games Summer Games
Charlotte County, Florida
Sports offered: Judo, Karate, Taekwondo and Track & Field
Sunshine State Games Fencing Championships
The Long Center, Clearwater, Florida
Sunshine State Games Powerlifting Championships
Highland Recreation Center, Largo, Florida
Sunshine State Games Table Tennis Championships
Serves as 2018 Florida Senior Games Qualifier for age 50 and over athletes
Simpson Recreation Center, Lakeland, Florida
June 22-24, 2018
Sunshine State Games Water Polo Championships
Coral Springs and Pompano Beach, Florida
June 30-July 1, 2018
Sunshine State Games Badminton Championships
Shula’s Athletic Club, Miami Lakes, Florida