Daniel Ferrazza’s 31-year career with the CYO (Catholic Youth Organization) left thousands of youngsters with enriched athletic experiences and Cleveland with a nationally prominent track event. While executive Director of the CYO eastern region from 1972 to 1988, he assumed a vital role in the operation of the annual Knights of Columbus Track Meet for […]
George Chandick’s outstanding 18-year post-college career as a player and player-coach in the Greater Cleveland Basketball League set the tone for a lifetime of devotion and service to athletics in the Greater Cleveland area. A lengthy list of achievements and honors as a coach, official, team sponsor and participant, George embraced a variety of sports, […]
From 1955 to 1985, the road to participation in any City of Cleveland recreational activity for Clevelanders of all ages went through City Hall’s Room 8 and Mary Jane Boldin. As the Cleveland Recreation Department’s Secretary to the Director of Organized Sports, she shouldered the bulk of the day-to-day responsibilities for everything from finding teams […]
At 16, Jenny Fish Baker was already a world class women’s speed skater. Thus her selection to the 1968 U.S. Olympic Team as a Baldwin-Wallace College freshman was no surprise. Nor was it a surprise when she earned Olympic Silver in the 500 meter sprint at Grenoble, France. She began her glide to the Olympics […]
A Pennsylvanian who moved to Cleveland to play for the American Hungarian team, George Caraffi and his brother Ralph were the city’s best soccer players of the 1920’s. Originally a defender/midfielder, he gained his greatest fame as a center forward. He twice scored seven goals in a game, but his biggest goal came on June […]
Danny Weiler won his 3,000th career victory at the age of 46 in 1983, enroute to becoming one of just 36 riders in thoroughbred racing history to have ridden over 3,500 winners. A large percentage of those victories came at Cleveland’s Thistledown Race Track where he won over a dozen Thistledown meet titles, beginning in […]
From August 1972 through October 1990, Frederick Baker drove in 184 races, winning 88, placing second in 30 and third in 18. During his memorable career he qualified for the pole position 69 times and established 25 lap records. In 1980 he earned acclaim as the worldwide Jaguar Driver of the Year and also earned […]
A graduate of Shaker Heights High, Steve Trevor went on to become a three-time NCAA Fencing All-American at Columbia University. He earned berths on the 1984 and 1988 U.S, Olympic teams, placing 17th overall in the 1988 epee competition. Earlier he won berths on the 1981 and 1983 U.S. World Junior Team, placing 8th in […]
William Reith learned to fence quickly and well at Fenn College in the mid-60’s, winning the All-Ohio epee title and finishing fourth in the Midwest Championships as a junior and going 41-7 as a senior. He continued in Open competition after graduation and competed on U.S. World Championship teams in 1974, 1975 and 1977 and […]
One of Greater Cleveland’s most accomplished fencing products, Jon Normile competed in epee for the U.S. Olympic Team in 1992 in Barcelona and was an alternate on the 1988 and 1996 teams. He was U.S. National Epee Champion in 1988 and 1991, National Junior Olympic Epee Champion in 1987 and at Columbus University in 1988. […]