Hawaii’s Clarissa Chun, USA Wrestling national women’s freestyle assistant coach, will travel to Jordan this week as a United World Wrestling ambassador.
Chun, a Roosevelt graduate, was the first female wrestler from Hawaii to win an Olympic medal, earning bronze in the 105.5-pound division at the 2012 London Games. The program, called Inspire Together for Peace, reaches out to Syrian refugees in the Azraq refugee camp in Jordan.
“I’m humbled by the opportunity to introduce wrestling to the Syrian refugees of the Azraq camp,” Chun said in a press release from USA Wrestling on Monday. “There are no language or cultural barriers in wrestling.
“Discipline, confidence, perseverance, and self-defense can all be learned through wrestling, regardless of a person’s place in life. We live in a chaotic world, and the Syrian civil war has left many to live a life facing constant adversity and suffering. I believe wrestling can offer a glimmer of hope for a better future to the refugees, as well as a means of connection to the global community.”
Cartaino named scholar athlete of the year
Chaminade men’s basketball guard Tyler Cartaino became the first Silverswords student-athlete to earn the Pacific West Conference male scholar-athlete of the year honor, as voted by the conference’s athletic directors on Monday.
The 6-foot-6 redshirt junior also earned All-PacWest first-team honors after averaging 17.7 points per game and 6.6 rebounds this season.
The native of Newbury Park, Calif., graduated in May with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and a grade-point average of 3.83. He will pursue his MBA next season.
