It has been a while since Philly could boast a national champion (Phillies, a few years ago), but now it can not only lay claim to a national champion but a groundbreaking one at that. Last Sunday, the Philadelphia based, Cowtown/Work to Ride program polo team won the 42nd annual USPA National Interscholastic Championship tournament in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Cowtown/WTR became the first all African American team to win the title, beating Baltimore in the final, 24-17. The Work to Ride program was started by team coach Leslie Hiner in 1994. The concept was to give underprivileged children from the Philadelphia area free riding lessons in exchange for work around the barn.
The team star, Kareem Rosser, who attends Valley Forge Military Academy (where they also field a polo team) is hoping to attend Cornell University next year.
It is a remarkable accomplishment for Hiner and her team who have demonstrated that there are few barriers left, even in the world of privileged and elite sports, for those who are up to the challenge of breaking them.
Bravo!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment