Friday at the AYF Olympics
It was another hectic Friday at the AYF Olympics. Golf and tennis began first thing in the morning and continued until mid-afternoon. Swimming commenced in the late afternoon, followed by the Friday night dances.
The tennis tournament took place at the indoor courts at the Tenafly Racquet Club. In recent years, New Jersey has dominated the women’s side of the bracket, even sweeping the event a few times. Last year, Mia Setrakian was the sole New Jersey Arsen to place, finishing second. This year, Mia took the gold medal but was, again, the only Arsen woman to score points in tennis.
Women’s Tennis
- Mia Setrakian, New Jersey
- Giselle Krikorian, Granite City
- Lily Janigian, Providence
- Meline Markarian, North Andover
In the men’s bracket, New Jersey dominated, placing first, third and fourth. Not only was it a New Jersey sweep of the medals, it was also a Setrakian family sweep. Mia’s brother, Peter, edged out last year’s winner, Michael-Armen Kadian, to win the men’s tournament.
Men’s Tennis
- Peter Setrakian, New Jersey
- Michael-Armen Kadian, Detroit
- Jeff Fales, New Jersey
- Ryan Yacoubian, New Jersey
The AYF and Alumni Golf Tournament
At the same time as the tennis games, the AYF and Alumni Golf Tournament was taking place at the Meadows Golf Club in Lincoln Park, New Jersey. The day began with a hearty breakfast buffet, as AYFers and alumni greeted old friends. The course was very wet from the heavy rains the night before, but the sun was shining for the tournament.
The AYFers teed off first, and then the alumni, rather than the shotgun start that has been the norm for the 10 years this reporter has been covering AYF Golf. When the golfers finished, they turned their scorecards over to the club pro, who would tally the results. At the time of this writing, the official results were not yet available, but here are some highlights.
On the men’s side, Alex Kassabian of New York was going for his seventh tournament win in his last year of competition. He looked to be on his way to do just that after shooting a 68 for the day.
But it was not to be. In the foursome behind Alex, Sam Selverian of Philadelphia shot a 67. Unofficially, Sam took the gold and Alex got the silver.
For the women, the results have not yet been released. Six women participated, two from Boston and four from New Jersey. So, let’s list them all:
- Christa Ariyan – New Jersey
- Kira Ariyan – New Jersey
- Christina Avakian – Boston
- Christiane Ezgilioglu – New Jersey
- Victoria Ezgilioglu – New Jersey
- Victoria Sarkissian – Boston
On the alumni side, Peter Tashjian and Mike Manoogian were the favorites at tee time. Look for full coverage of the AYF and Alumni Golf in the Armenian Weekly’s Olympic Special Edition Magazine.
There were three interesting side notes from the golf.
First, a fellow named Brian Corcoran asked who was sponsoring our tournament. When he learned that it was Armenian, he commented, “I used to referee youth basketball up in Bergen County. I refed a lot of games in an Armenian youth league and loved it. The coaches and players were all wonderful people.”
The second was Dr. Diran Balekian of North Andover playing in the Alumni Tournament. He was paired with his 12-year-old son, Jack, who loves golf and hit the ball very well. We will, no doubt, see Jack competing for North Andover in about four years.
Lastly, it was Victoria Ezgilioglu’s last AYF golf competition. At the end of the round, she took out a new ball and a Sharpie and had the other five women initial it as a memento of her time competing in AYF Golf.
After the golf and tennis matches, everyone headed to the swimming competition at Rockland Community College in Suffern, New York. Just like last year, the swimming was run very efficiently. It started and ended on time, which has not always been the case.
While the official results have not yet been released, it appeared to have been a good day for the Detroit Chapter. They took all the relays, and Natalya Katcherian took three firsts. Detroit is in a very good position heading into Sunday’s track and field competition.
Other notable swimming performances included Matt Janian of North Andover, who also took three firsts, and Ava Garabedian of Philadelphia, who had two firsts and one second.
On the whirlwind day that Friday is at the AYF Olympics, we then rushed back to the hotel to clean up and get to the Alumni and AYF dances. As is always the case, the host chapter provided a buffet of Armenian food. This year, the offerings were plentiful and the kebabs were delicious. Kudos to the Arsens!
The Alumni Band was wonderful, providing the music that the alumni love to dance to. This was followed by the AYF Dance, featuring Harout Bedrossian and Band, who played the music that the AYFers like to dance to. Both performances made for a most memorable Friday night at the AYF Olympics.
Lastly, Friday evening is also when the Varadian Spirit Award winners and the Olympic Kings and Queens are announced. Four Varadian Spirit Awards were given, and two Olympic Queens and one Olympic King were named.
Varadian Spirit Awards:
- Bea Movsesian
- Sarkis Shirinian
- Ara Dinkjian
- Diane Terlemezian Tavitian (posthumously)
Olympic King and Queens:
- Richard Sarajian
- Sona Mirakian-Pehlivanian
- Sharon Chipolone
With the announcement of each name, everyone felt the love for these wonderful recipients and the grand tradition of the AYF in the room.
Next on the agenda is the always-popular AYF Softball Tournament and Picnic, followed by the Saturday Night Dance featuring Elie Berberian and DJ Glo.
Look for more coverage of all the Friday events and award recipients in the Armenian Weekly’s AYF Olympics Special Edition Magazine. Please consider sponsoring the magazine, and supporting the Armenian Weekly by becoming a subscriber.
