As spring comes around, my thoughts always turn back to my erstwhile university days, running endless laps in the brisk sunny days of Husky Stadium whilst aspiring to whimsical and lofty podium achievements.  Today, Husky Stadium is being rebuilt only for football while the old track has been relinquished somewhere in the shadows of the school’s football tradition.  That is simply a reflection of this countries lack of support for non revenue sports and perhaps why the USA no longer dominates Track and Field as it did in the fifties and sixties.  I still recall my first big track meet in Husky Stadium in 1961, as a young 9th grader participating in the North American Latvian Championships in Seattle.  That stadium was packed with nearly as many Latvians as we averaged at our Husky dual meets some years later.  That Latvian track legacy still continues with new crops of Latvian kids participating in the NCAAs.  I am always pleasantly surprised not only by their achievements but the location of their schools – trying to figure out the logical recruiting connection.  In my mind, the love of the minor sports reflects the true nature of the NCAA Scholar Athlete – the amateurs love for sport as the adjunct to scholarship. 

Topping this years Track & Field list is again Mara Griva who currently leads the nation as the #1 Triple Jumper with a distance of 45’ 3 ¾” or 13.81 M and is also ranked #2 in the Long Jump with a mark of 21’ 11 ¾” or 6.70M – very, very impressive for the Nebraska Husker Junior from Ventspils, Latvia.  Last year she hit the national spot light claiming four Big 12 titles and earning four All-America honors.  Her list of results is excellent and well stated on the Nebraska Track & Field website for examination.  Considering her success in this year’s indoor season – her spring showing should be interesting.  Mara’s best in Latvia has been 3rd in both events at the Latvian National Championships.  Nice write up about Mara at:

http://www.big12sports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=10410&ATCLID=205111587

USC Trojan Senior Kristine Busa will finish her Trojan career this season as one of the top female javelin throwers in USC history.  She has the second-farthest toss ever by a Trojan female of 179-1 (54.78m), seven-feet, nine-inches off the school record.  She struggled through last year’s season due to a knee injury and subsequent surgery.  Currently she ranks #8 in the country with a toss of 172’ 7” or 52.6M and should be fun to follow this spring in the PAC 12 and NCAAs.  I look to some good results from this determined athlete following in the Latvian tradition of javelin throwers.

http://www.usctrojans.com/sports/c-track/mtt/busa_kristine00.html

Last year, the University of Connecticut freshman, Ilva Bikanova from Madona, placed 14th in the High Jump at the NCAA Championships in Des Moines, Iowa and accordingly, earned Second Team All-America honors.  Bikanova becomes UConn’s 13th high jumper to be named All-American.  “Ilva did a great job early in the competition, especially with her first attempt clearance of 1.76M.  As one of only three freshmen in the competition at her first NCAA Championship, it was remarkable for her to add to the program’s high jump All-America titles” said head coach Bill Morgan.  So far, this spring Ilva is ranked #18 in the nation with a jump of 5’11 ¼” or 1.81M.

http://www.uconnhuskies.com/sports/w-track/mtt/bikanova_ilva00.html

The Idaho Vandals now have connected to two Latvian track athletes.  The female new comer to the national rankings is Junior Liga Velvere, listed as #32 in the 400M Hurdles with a time of 58.61 run last weekend.  Last season, Liga was first spotlighted when she earned the Western Athletic Conference Verizon Women’s Track Athlete of the Week for her Vandal team.  She is from Saldus, Latvia (Latvian Academy of Sport).  Her time last year of 59.30 is the fastest by an Idaho runner in 10 years – so this year’s time might put her on the school record.  She also helps the Vandal women’s 4x400m relay team as the anchor along with having respectable times in the 200 and 800 meter events.

http://www.govandals.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=17100&ATCLID=205121282

The other Vandal is sophomore Ugis Svazs who had a good showing in the men’s javelin at Sacramento last weekend.  Ugis tossed a career best of 215-3 (65.61m) to finish second in the event and move into second best in the WAC. That throw bumps him to sixth all-time at Idaho, 46th in the NCAA rankings and 26th in the West Region in the event.  Ugis is from Kuldiga, Latvia (Murjanu Sport Gymnasium).

http://parsportu.lv/f/resources/articles1/40944/orig/svazs-ugis-jbs_9219-2.jpg

Leading the traditional Latvian Javelin pack this year again is Martins Pildavs from Troy University in Alabama – currently ranked #7 with a toss of 75.30M at Mobile, Alabama last weekend.  Last year he set school record in the javelin throw with a distance of 73.32 meters ranking him tenth in the 2011 NCAA.  Two years ago he won the Jr. College NCAA Javelin Champion and placed third in the Hammer and was also recognized as an All-American in the Discus at the JC level.  Pildavs father Normands, was the Latvian Champion several years in the early 90s and participated in the Olympics in the Javelin. 

http://www.troytrojans.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=2281

Part 2 –

Pole Vault, an event not so common to the north men of Latvia, but University of Memphis has discovered the Pujats brothers from Riga.  A surprise contender this year is Karlis Pujats, a senior from University of Memphis.  Karlis escaped my search last year when he turned in NCAA All-American honors for the 2011 indoor season as injuries limited his participation in last years out door season.  Earlier in January, Karlis Pujats posted the nation’s 12th-best mark of 5.32m (17-05.50) in the pole vault at the University of Kentucky.  Pujats’ performance was second-best at the meet but currently tops the C-USA standings. Earning his first C-USA Athlete of the Week honor, Pujats is the defending C-USA indoor pole vault champion.  This season’s best outdoor jump for Karlis is 5.26M ranking him at #35 this spring.

Earlier in February, the Memphis track team announced the signing of Latvian pole vaulter Pauls Pujats, the 2010 Outdoor Latvian Championships, Karlis’ younger brother.  “He’s dynamite, he’s one of the best young vaulters in the world,” said head track and field coach Kevin Robinson.  “He can’t wait to get here, and we can’t wait to have him here.  In July of last year, Pujats vaulted his personal best of 5.30m (17-4.50) at the 2011U23 European Championships finishing ninth overall. The following month he would tie his personal best to reach the finals of the 2011 World University games. The previous year he placed sixth at the 13th IAAF World Junior Championships with a height of 5.10m (16-08.75).  Prior to Memphis, Pujats attended Latvian University in Riga, Latvia.  Below is a good YouTube video of the two Pujats brothers training on the pole vault.

Sacramento State’s Baiba Celma notched a career-high 5,174 to win the heptathlon at the Mondo Mid-Major Challenge at Hornet Stadium on Friday, marking the second-highest point total ever achieved by a Hornet in the event, the school reported. Her career-best mark tops the Big Sky Conference and is tied for 18th in the nation. The senior began the day in first and went on to win the long jump (18 feet, 5 inches) and the javelin (140-7). She concluded with a fourth-place time of 2:28 in the 800 meters.  Below is a great photo of Baiba clearing the high jump.

http://www.hornetsports.com/sports/track/release.asp?release_id=10376

I’m having trouble finding much info on our other pentathlete, Karen Guravska, also an All-American pole vaulter in Junior College and now at the University of Hawaii for this year.  I have short results that she participated in a meet in Nampa in the High Jump with a result of 1.65 M in late February.  Also that at the University of Hawaii Relays she had a javelin throw of 37.03 M – but no place listed. As a hep/pentathlete she may be participating in focused events early in the season.

Karen’s team mate Madara Apine, earlier this year won the WAC triple jump title at Nampa, Idaho with a jump of 41’5” 12.62M.  The only other data point is she took 7th place at the Stanford invitational on April 7 with a triple jump of 12.27M and 12.45M a few weeks earlier at the Hawaii Open meet.  Madara was the Latvian junior national record holder in the triple jump 13.22m and competed in the World Junior Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland in 2008.  She is from Ikskile, Latvia.  Below is a good picture of her win at the WAC indoor.

http://hawaiiathletics.com/news/2012/2/25/WOUTDOOR_0225120013.aspx

Rowing -  The No. 7 USC Trojan women’s rowing team continued their red-hot start to the 2012 season winning two-of-three races against No. 5 Princeton and No. 17 Yale at Carnegie Lake in Princeton, NJ last Saturday morning.  USC’s Varsity Eight boat led from start to finish with the help of the Number 8 seat – sophomore Vineta Moca finishing in 6:24.6.  Princeton placed second with a time of 6:27.0 and Yale took third at 6:30.2. It is the second win in as many races for the Varsity Eight this season.  Vineta comes from Tukuma, Latvia and attended Murjanu Sport Gymnasium.

Currently, I can find nothing on last years USC freshmen rower, Liene Stuberovska who last year helped power the Trojans second varsity 8 boat to a fifth place finish at the NCAA Championships and a third place finish at the Pac-10 Championships.  Perhaps she is sidelined with an injury this season?  Both girls have the benefit of being trained under three time USC All-American Ligita Kaviere is now an assistant coach with the USC rowing program.  USC has a nice pipe line into Latvia for lady rowers of serious acclaim for over a decade.

And, because NCAA Volleyball drags late into spring, let me update you on the continued success of the “Berzini puiši”.  The legacy of this family started back with All-American Ohio State Hall of Famer, Aldis Berzins, a 1984 Olympic gold medalist and former outside hitter who led the Buckeyes to four Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association championships and four NCAA Final Four appearances between 1975 and 1978.  This tradition has been carried forward with his sons Kris and Dainis, who now have made the family name synonymous with volleyball at Loyola University Chicago where Kris too was an All American and last year returned as assistant coach to coach the youngest brother Dainis.  And, son Mik Berzins stepped up the pace last year and helped Ohio State win their first NCAA Volleyball title – which Aldis, despite his plentiful bounty, did not accomplish.  This is a proud American Latvian sporting legacy and you can read a wonderful write up of the pending match last February about the family when OSU Mik Berzins matched up against brothers Kris and Dainis of Loyola.  The outcome of that game was an OSU win, but the real victory belongs to the proud Berzins family. 

http://www.thelantern.com/sports/berzins-brothers-to-battle-in-chicago-volleyball-match-1.2792207

http://www.loyolaramblers.com/sports/m-volley/spec-rel/112211aab.html

jvc

Thanks, Jani, for this update on all the young chicks and dudes!  It’s wonderful and inspiring to see all these young Latvians and one, Ilva Bikanova, yet, from Madona—where my father and his family were brought up!

More power and I wish them all success!

Irena

Thanks for keeping track of all of them!

I emailed Karen Guravska’s photo/article to my Hawaiian friend who was pleasantly surprised to read about her.  I have talked so much about Latvia to her and cooked piragi and kotletes for her and her husband, she feels like Latvia is her imaginary home. Now she can boast that at the University of Hawaii they have a Latvian champion athlete.
Thank you for sharing this information, Celms.

Just read about Chase Budinger of the Houston Rockets state that he would like to play for the Latvian team.  His mother is Mara Eglitis and his grandfather was Andrejs Eglitis.  Meester Celms, got only 411 on this young man from California and U of Arizona?  His sister is a pro-volleyball player and his brother Duncan plays b-ball in Europe.

Paldies, Clem!

Your welcome.  Who’s Clem???

Jani, I don’t know if you mean that as a joke “Whose Clem”?  Or is it really that you don’t remember??!!  It was long lost Darrell who first referred to as “Clem” way back when…I don’t recall whether it was just a typo error—“Celms” or what exactly…but it was one of those moments on LOL when I had the longest, hardest laugh!!

Ar smaidu,

Irena

Paldies, Irena for answering Clem’s query.

I hadn’t got around to it yet—and there you were!  Yeah, whatever happened to that good ole Nova Scotia boy Darrell (Abols, Abolins, Aboltins, Abolbergs, Abolkalns, Abolkuka; I forget; it’s been so long.)

ak

Baseball season is winding down, football just completed its extended pre-season (hopefully the first 3 games with amateur refs won’t count) and basketball season is almost upon us.  Not too many Latvians playing baseball or NFL football, but basketball is something else.  Out in California we still have Andris Biedrins (who, as the press has reported, has a girlfriend named Katrīna) playing center for the Warriors.  This past summer we learned that Chase Budinger of the Houston Rockets is half Latvian and would like to play for Latvia in the Olympics.  And then we have Andy Rautins, son of Leo Rautins of Canada.  Leo made news when he was the first round pick of the Philadelphia 76ers back in 1983.  Knee injuries limited his playing time and after playing in Europe, he retired.  Andy also has had knee problems but is still playing, now with the Oklahoma City Thunder (formerly known as the Seattle Sonics).  These 3 would be an interesting combination on a LV team hoping to play b-ball in the Olympics.

PS I do know who Clem is.  I was just kidding.