After nearly 40 years and five coaching regimes, George Kamau ripped his last piece of tape as Farrington High School's head trainer Friday. Govs win in
Athletes of the Week
Kamau’s finaleBy Jason Kaneshiro
jkaneshiro@starbulletin.comThe Governors closed their football season with a 35-20 win over Leilehua, giving Kamau a proper sendoff after 39 years of tending to Farrington athletes.
"I thought I would have gotten out of it by now, but they kept asking me to stay," Kamau said.
Kamau, who will retire as the school's Athletic Health Care Specialist this fall, began working at Farrington in 1962 at the request of coach Tom Kiyosaki.
He continued to serve when Al Espinda, Skippa Diaz, Harold Tanaka and current coach David Pila took over the football program. He wasn't paid for his efforts until 1992, when the state implemented a pilot program for athletic trainers.
"He has the love and the ohana," said Pila, who worked with Kamau both as a player and a coach.
"But at the same time he was stern and fair.
"He brought his knowledge of not only the training aspect but of the football aspect as well. He's an excellent asset to the program."
Kamau's contributions extend beyond the Kalihi campus. His input helped get legislation passed creating the pilot program for athletic trainers. His son, Keoki Kamau, was a long-time trainer in the National Football League with the Washington Redskins and San Diego Chargers, and two trainers who worked under him at Farrington are now head trainers at major universities.
"When you do something for the kids, it gives you a big reward," Kamau said. "It makes you feel good to see these kids from Kalihi go through and make it."
While Kamau, who cared for two generations of Governors, is retiring from his training duties, he will continue to look after the well-being of Farrington football players next year as a part-time equipment manager.
"I'm going to miss the kids," he said. "They're just like my kids."
Wrestling All-Americans: Two recent Punahou graduates have been named to the 2001 National High School Coaches Association Academic All-America Wrestling team.
DeAnna Lau, who attends UCLA, is the first woman to be named to the 100-member team. She posted a 21-1 record for the Buffanblu last season and won the state championship in the girls 114-pound class. Lau also earned a 3.89 grade-point average and scored 1,550 on her SAT.
Mark Egesdal was 31-0 last season and won the state title in the boys 171-pound class. He posted a 3.83 GPA and a 1,490 on his SAT. He attends Stanford.
Shooting for a state title: St. Louis and Sacred Hearts will aim to keep the state air riflery crowns in Kaimuki when the first state tournament of the school year opens Monday on the Big Island.
Konawaena will host the Hawaii High School Athletic Association air riflery championships Monday and Tuesday. Shooting begins at 9 a.m. on both days.
The competition, sponsored by the Civilian Marksmanship Program, will feature the top 60 boys and girls from around the state.
St. Louis and Sacred Hearts have won the boys and girls titles in the two years of the tournaments' existence.
Athletes of the Week
To nominateBoys
>> Jon Grobe, Iolani boys volleyball: Recorded 23 kills in the Raiders' win over Punahou and 28 kills against Hawaii Baptist in Interscholastic League of Honolulu matches last week.
Girls
>> Ashley Swart, Kaiser cross country: Won the Oahu Interscholastic Association East Division championship last week, finishing with a time of 12 minutes, 39 seconds.Honor Roll
Air riflery
>> Kyle Chu, St. Louis: Scored a match-high 531 points against Punahou.>> Vicci Yau, Punahou: Led the Buffanblu girls team with 530 points.
Bowling
>> Justin Mew, Kaiser: Bowled a high game of 255.>> Kimberly Chu, Kaiser: Bowled a high game of 226 and a high series of 632.
>> Chad Uyehara, Hawaii Baptist: Bowled a high game of 240 and recorded a total pinfall of 1,196 in the Eagles' wins over Damien and St. Louis.
Cross Country
>> Todd Iacovelli, Punahou: Led the Buffanblu to a first-place finish in the Kamehameha Invitational by finishing in 16:13, 20 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher.>> Jeff Lim, Mililani: Led the Trojans to a first-place finish with a time of 16:38.21 in last week's OIA meet.
>> Cheyenne Diaz, Castle: Won the OIA East boys championship with a time of 16:05, 48 seconds ahead of his closest competitor.
>> Christal Cuadra, Pac-Five: Was the only girl to finish under 12 minutes at the Kamehameha Invitational, coming in at 11:24.
football
>> Lole Laolagi, Aiea: Set the OIA record for touchdown passes in a season with four against Kaiser to bring his season total to 28.>> Joel Botelho, Castle: Led the Knights to a come-from-behind victory over Kailua with 202 total yards, two rushing touchdowns and two passing touchdowns.
>> Brenton Harbottle, Kailua: Rushed 32 times for 174 yards and two touchdowns against Castle.
>> Branden Chung, Waipahu: Hauled in three receptions, all touchdowns, for a total of 116 yards.
>> Paulo Aga, Waipahu: Ran in one score and threw for three more as Waipahu clinched a playoff berth.
>> Chris Mols, Roosevelt: Tossed three touchdown passes in just over a half of play against Moanalua.
>> Raynold Stowers, Iolani: Scored on a 57-yard touchdown run and totaled 122 yards on six carries against Damien.
>> Kelena Ho'okano, Kamehameha: Ran the ball 23 times for 102 yards and a touchdown against Punahou.
>> Bobby George, St. Louis: Completed 17 of 24 passes for 239 yards and three touchdowns.
>> Travis Canonizado, Kalani: Rumbled for 232 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries against Waialua.
>> Charlie Tantog, Waialua: Rushed for 174 yards, kicked three extra points and scored three touchdowns as the Bulldogs notched their first win.
>> Inoke Funaki, Kahuku: Passed for five touchdowns and 212 yards as the Red Raiders clinched the OIA Red title.
>> Kekoa Reyes, Waianae: Ran 10 times for 74 yards and a touchdown against Mililani. He also returned an interception 51 yards for a touchdown.
Boys Volleyball
>> Isaac Kneubuhl, Kamehameha: Pounded 23 kills in the Warriors' sweep of St. Louis.
Girls Volleyball
>> Tamari Miyashiro, Kalani: Recorded 11 kills as the Falcons beat Moanalua to clinch the OIA East title.
To nominate an athlete of the week, contact the Star-Bulletin Sports Department by 11 p.m. Sunday: To nominate ...
Phone: 529-4782
Fax: 529-4787
E-mail: sports@starbulletin.com
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