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August 21, 2002
Saratoga, California Since 1955 |
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Fencers Kirk-Gordon, Lee place at nationals
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Dick Sparrer
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Dmitri Kirk-Gordon of Campbell and Martin Lee
of Saratoga each placed in their age group at
the National Fencing Championships, held in
July in Greenville, S.C.
Kirk-Gordon won the gold medal in the men's
under-19 foil event, topping a field of 118
competitors. Kirk-Gordon, 16, is the No. 1
ranked fencer in the nation in the age group
and represented the United States at the
World Fencing Championships in Anatalya,
Turkey, last April, placing fifth. The event
is second only to the Olympic Games in
international competition.
Kirk-Gordon trains with Lucchetti Fencing
Foundation of Davis and Milpitas.
Lee finished third in the 92-competitor field
in the men's under-19 epee event. Lee, 18, is
a recent graduate of Lynbrook who will attend
Stanford in the fall. He is currently ranked
third nationally in the men's under-19 epee
division, and he trains at the California
Fencing Academy in San Jose.
Other California Fencing Academy competitors
who placed at the nationals were Josh Lepold
and Emerson DiNapoli of Los Gatos.
Lepold finished 11th, with DiNapoli 12th in
the men's under-16 foil event. There were 121
competitors in the field. Lepold, 15, is a
sophomore at Los Gatos High School, and
DiNapoli, 15, is a sophomore at Bellarmine
Prep.
Kicks excel
Casey Dahlbeck, 9, of Saratoga and Kyle Mui,
12, of Los Gatos each won two gold medals and
a silver when they competed for the Studio
Kicks Competition Team of Los Gatos in the
U.S. Open and ISKA World Martial Arts
Championships in Orlando, Fla.
Nick Smith, 14, of Los Gatos and Michelle
Fitzsimmons, 15, of Saratoga each won bronze
medals, and Jo Anne Fitzsimmons of Saratoga
finished fifth.
The martial artists, under the direction of
coaches Larry Lam and Richard Branden, both
former world champions, specialize in the
arts of tae kwon do and wushu.
Nakanishi places
Geoffrey Nakanishi of Cupertino finished
second in kobudo and third in kata in the
boys 12-year-old intermediate division at the
Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) National Karate
Tournament, held July 1-6 in Salt Lake
City, Utah.
Nakanishi was one of five athletes from the
Jim Mather California Karate Academy in
Cupertino to place in the tournament. Tiffany
Choy of Los Altos won a gold medal in kobudo
and a bronze in kata in the girls 8-year-old
intermediate division; Sara Margozzi of San
Jose was second in kata in the girls
8-year-old novice class; Kevin Sweeney of Los
Altos won gold in kobudo and bronze in both
kata and kumite in the boys 9-year-old
advanced division; and Patrick Sweeney of Los
Altos was sixth in both kobudo and Kumite in
boys 12-year-old advanced.
Nakanishi, K. Sweeney, P. Sweeney and Choy
qualified for the AAU Junior Olympic Games,
to be held this month in Knoxville, Tenn.
Clark qualifies
Sara Clark, a recent graduate of Los Gatos
High School, qualified for the U.S. Diving
National Championships, which ran through
Aug. 4 at Stanford University.
Clark, who will attend UCLA in the fall,
earned a place in the nationals by finishing
second on the 3-meter board, third on the
1-meter board and third on the platform in
competition in Beaverton, Ore., in July.
Chan a winner
Gymnast Melissa Chan of Los Gatos finished
first at the U.S. National Jr. Olympics to
earn a place on the national team, which
trains at the Olympic Training Center in
Colorado Springs, Colo.
Chan, who will be a sophomore at Los Gatos
High School in the fall, won the gold medal
in the all-around and also finished first in
both the vault and the balance beam at the
Jr. Nationals in Baltimore, Md.
The Los Gatos gymnastics star had finished
first in the state and first in the region.
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