Empire State Games
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The Empire State Games is a yearly Olympic-style competition for amateur athletes from the state of New York, encompassing several divisions allowing athletes of all ages to compete. The Empire State Games is a member of the National Congress of State Games.
There are several different Empire State Games competitions - a Summer games, typically held in late July, a Winter games, held at Lake Placid in February, Games for the Physically Challenged, similar to the Paralympics, and the Senior Games, specificially for athletes age 50 and older.
The first Empire State Games took place at Syracuse University in 1978, the first "State Games" to be held in the United States, and an event which would spark other "State Games" across the country. Syracuse would go on to host the first seven editions of the event, from 1978 to 1984. Buffalo was host in 1985 and 1986.
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[edit] Regions
New York State is divided into six regions for the Empire State Games, and each region fields its own athletic teams through tryouts before the Games begin.
Adirondack Central Hudson Valley Long Island New York City Western
The Adirondack region covers Albany, Clinton, Columbia, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Greene, Hamilton, Montgomery, Saratoga, Schoharie, Schenectady, St. Lawrence, Rensselaer, Warren, and Washington counties, including the cities of Albany, Glens Falls, Plattsburgh, Schenectady, and Troy. Athletes competing as part of the Adirondack team wear bright yellow uniforms.
The Central region covers Broome, Cayuga, Chemung, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Madison, Oneida, Onondaga, Oswego, Otsego, Schuyler, Tioga, and Tompkins counties, including the cities of Binghamton, Elmira, Ithaca, Oswego, Rome, Syracuse, and Utica. Athletes competing as part of the Central team wear powder blue uniforms.
The Hudson Valley region covers Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster, and Westchester counties, including the cities of Middletown, Newburgh, and Poughkeepsie. Athletes competing as part of the Hudson Valley team wear green and gold uniforms.
The Long Island region covers the two counties of Long Island: Nassau and Suffolk counties. Athletes competing as part of the Long Island team wear red and silver uniforms.
The New York City region covers only the five boroughs of New York City: The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island. Athletes competing as part of the New York City team wear orange uniforms with blue trim.
The Western region covers Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Ontario, Orleans, Seneca, Steuben, Wayne, Wyoming, and Yates counties, including the cities of Buffalo, Corning, Niagara Falls, and Rochester. Athletes competing as part of the Western team wear dark blue uniforms.
[edit] Summer Events
There are two divisions in the Summer Empire State Games: open and scholastic. The scholastic division is restricted to high schoolers who are entering 9th grade, 10th grade, or 11th grade. Once an athlete begins 9th grade for the first time, he or she may compete in the scholastic division for the next three years. All other athletes must enter the open division.
Open and Scholastic Events:
- Archery
- Basketball
- Boxing
- Diving
- Fencing
- Gymnastics
- Shooting
- Soccer
- Swimming
- Track and Field
- Volleyball
- Wrestling
Open only:
- Bowling
- Canoeing and Kayaking
- Cycling
- Judo
- Rowing
- Sailing
- Softball
- Synchronized swimming
- Weightlifting
Scholastic only:
[edit] Masters Events
The Masters division competes separately from the open and scholastic divisions, but has many of the same events.
- Archery
- Badminton
- Basketball
- Bowling
- Bridge
- Canoeing
- Cycling
- Diving
- Fencing
- Handball
- Horseshoes
- Golf
- Gymnastics
- Orienteering
- Pickleball
- Racquetball
- Rugby
- Shuffleboard
- Softball
- Swimming
- Table tennis
- Tennis
- Triathlon
- Volleyball
[edit] Winter Events
- Alpine skiing
- Biathlon
- Bobsled
- Cross-country skiing
- Figure skating
- Ice hockey (women only)
- Luge
- Short track speed skating
- Skeleton
- Ski jumping
- Ski orienteering
- Snowshoe racing
- Speed skating
[edit] ESG for the Physically Challenged
The Empire State Games for the Physically Challenged is open to athletes between the ages of 5 and 21 in the following divisions: visually impaired, blind, hearing impaired, deaf, spinal cord injury, amputee, cerebral palsy, and Les Autres (which includes conditions such as muscular dystrophy, dwarfism, and arthritis, among others).
- Archery
- Slalom obstacle course
- Swimming
- Table tennis
- Track and Field
- Wheelchair racing
[edit] Recent Empire State Games
Summer
- 1996 - Buffalo (Western)
- 1997 - Capital District (Adirondack)
- 1998 - Rochester (Western)
- 1999 - Long Island
- 2000 - Binghamton (Central)
- 2001 - Mohawk Valley (Central)
- 2002 - Syracuse (Central)
- 2003 - Buffalo (Western)
- 2004 - Binghamton (Central)
- 2005 - New Paltz (Hudson Valley)
- 2006 - Rochester (Western)
- 2007 - Westchester County (Hudson Valley)
- 2008 - Binghamton (Central)
- 2009 - Poughkeepsie (Hudson Valley)
- 2010 - Buffalo (Western)
[edit] Notable Empire State Games athletes
Alpine Skiing
- Diann Roffe, Western
Baseball
- Andy Van Slyke, Central
Basketball
- Kenny Anderson, New York City
- Ron Artest, New York City, 1997-1998
- Walter Berry, New York City
- Sue Bird, Long Island
- Elton Brand, Hudson Valley, 1997
- Rick Carlisle, Adirondack
- Christian Laettner, Western
- Chris Mullin, New York City
- Sam Perkins, New York City
- Wally Szczerbiak, Long Island, 1997
- Dwayne Washington, New York City
Boxing
- Michael Bentt,New York City
- Hector Camacho, New York City
- Joe Mesi, Western
- Mike Tyson, New York City
- Hasim Rahman
Cycling
- Mike McCarthy, New York City
- George Hincapie, Long Island
Field Hockey
- Tracey Fuchs, Long Island
Ice Hockey
- Christopher Higgins, Long Island, 2000-2001
- Todd Marchant, Western
- Matt Murley, Central, 1997
- Lyndsay Wall, Western, 2001
Skeleton
- Jimmy Shea, Adirondack
Soccer
- Jerrod Laventure, Long Island
Swimming
- Kara Lynn Joyce, Western
Wrestling
- Jeff Blatnick, Adirondack
[edit] See also
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