Congratulations to Remi Edvalson, grade 8, who was recently chosen for USA Diving’s 2017 Junior National Squad. Edvalson was one of only 30 divers nationwide – and one of just three Californians – invited to be a part of this prestigious group. “The program is aimed at providing these athletes the resources needed to help them continue to progress in their training, with the ultimate goal of developing into future senior national team members and potential Olympic team members,” according to teamusa.org.
Middle school cellist Angeline Kiang, grade 7, recently won first prize in the second edition of the Enkor International Music Competition, in the strings category for musicians ages 11-15. A member of the Grades 7-8 Orchestra, Kiang scored a stellar 94.37 from the jury, which comprises more than 500 members.
Last month, sixth grader Sarah Mohammed won a gold medal at USA Archery’s California State Indoor Competition, taking first place in the Bowman Women Recurve category. The event lasted two days, with each day consisting of six hours of intense competition. In the 2016 indoor competition, Mohammed took third and was ranked ninth at the national level.
In February, Mohammed traveled to Las Vegas for the World Archery Championships, where she finished at a highly respectable fourth place in her division, which included competitors from all over the world. Later this month, Mohammed will head to the national indoor competition and state outdoor competition, with plans to compete at the international outdoor competition in the summer.
Late last year, Vignesh Panchanatham, grade 11, was named to the US Chess Federation’s 2017 All-America Chess Team in the age 15 category, one of the highest possible accolades for a chess player under the age of 18. It capped off a very successful chess year for Panchanatham, who was also named an International Master following his July performance at the World Open in Philadelphia. Way to go, Vignesh!
Last month, lower school chess enthusiasts Omya and Vyom Vidyarthi – grades 1 and 4, respectively – had stellar showings at the Los Angeles Open chess tournament run by the Continental Chess Association. The siblings took first place in the mixed doubles team competition, winning $600. In individual competition, Omya tied for first place in the Under 1200 rating section to win a $250 cash prize and Vyom took second place in the Under 1850 rating section to take home $600.
The most recently available ranking data shows that Omya is ranked seventh nationwide among girls age 7 or younger and No. 72 overall among players age 7 or under. Vyom is ranked No. 23 in the nation in the age 9 category.
Congratulations to these two great competitors and wishes for continued success!
In early October, sophomore pianist Nicole Chen performed at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall as one of the winners of the 2015-16 American Fine Arts Festival Competition. Chen, who began playing in kindergarten, has had success in numerous competitions over the years. She also is involved with the Music Buddies organization, which organizes youth concerts for senior centers. Way to go!
In early September, synchronized swimming enthusiast Kate Chow, grade 11, helped team USA win the gold at the UANA Pan-American Synchronized Swimming Championship in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The team faced international competition from many South American countries, as well as from Canada.
“I actually began synchro because I didn’t make a dance team, and I needed something to do,” said Chow, who has been involved with synchronized swimming since the fifth grade. “It combined gymnastics, dance and swimming, and previously, I participated in all three separately.”
In the last six years, Chow has been a member of three U.S. nationals-winning teams. She plans to continue swimming with her club, the Santa Clara Aquamaids, and also would like to compete in college.
Kudos to the Harker Quiz Bowl Team, which won first place at the 2015 Bellarmine Middle School Invitational on May 24. The event was organized by National Academic Quiz Tournaments (NAQT).
Earlier in the year, the team had advanced to NAQT’s Middle School National Championship Tournament, held in Dallas on May 9. There, the team competed with 128 teams from all over the country, advancing to the elimination round and finishing 29th in the nation.
The Harker team comprised grade 8 students Nishka Ayyar and Jack Dawson, and grade 7 students Kyle Li, Arun Sundaresan and Jin Tuan.
Over the weekend of March 14-15, the Willow Glen Thunder National Junior Basketball team, which features grade 6 students Hunter Hernandez, Courtni Thompson and Dylan Williams and is co-coached by Hunter’s father, Sam Hernandez, took home the NJB All-Net National Championship! The team was undefeated the entire weekend, using a fast-paced play style, rock-solid defense and perimeter shooting to finish with a 16-1 overall record on the season. The three girls also were part of the Harker JVB basketball team that earned the league championship a few weeks ago!
That same weekend, Freddy Hoch, grade 4, and Om Tandon and Justin Chao, both grade 3, who play for the NJB Saratoga D3 All-Star team, helped their squad win the Silicon Valley Championship. They will play in the All-Star championship tournament this weekend in Anaheim. Wish them luck!