EMMY PARK
Empire and garden state athletes are bringing their hometown pride to the Paris 2024 Olympics, which kick off July 26 and run through Aug. 11.
“We spend so much of our lives training for this moment,” Anita Alvarez, 27, captain of the eight-women Team USA artistic swim team, told The Post.
Two years ago, the Buffalo native almost died when she passed out unexpectedly during a competition and sank to the bottom of the pool. A quick thinking coach rescued her, and, now, Alvarez is headed to France.
She’s one of several hometeam players to watch this games. Meet five others.
Mitchell Saron, 23, Fencing
Years prior to being a star in the men’s individual sabre event, the Ridgewood, NJ, native showed a talent with lightsabers.
“Before I was even born, my mom put me in front of the ‘Star Wars’ original trilogies,” Saron, who started fencing at age 9 at Bergen Fencing Club, told The Post. “[Growing up], I would ask my family members to fight with me in the yard with swords.”
In April 2023, he quit alcohol and ramped up his protein intake to get into Olympic form. For the past 15 months, he’s been subsisting on grass-fed meat, wild-caught fish and loads of vegetables.
“I [hadn’t been] very disciplined outside of the gym,” said Saron, who still trains in Bergen as well as at the New York Athletic Club. “I realized there were a lot more sacrifices that needed to be made.”
Then, last November, he hit a major setback when he injured the thumb of his fencing hand. A doctor advised him to take a break from the sport, but Saron wouldn’t have it.
Instead, with the help of his coach, he switched his grip to hold the sabre like a tennis racket and allow him to wear a makeshift, protective cast.
He successfully competed in three Olympic qualifiers with the setup and is now thrilled to be representing the US in competition.
“It was a dream of mine ever since I was a kid,” said Saron.
Anita Alvarez, 27, Artistic Swimming
In 2022, Alvarez passed out and sank to the bottom of the pool after finishing her free solo routine in the World Aquatics Championship in Budapest, Hungary.
Team USA head coach Andrea Fuentes dove in to save her in a moment that went viral, thanks to harrowing photos of the incident. In the wake of it all, she considered quitting.
“When that happened I said, ‘maybe this is a sign that it’s time to hang up the goggles and the career,’ ” Alvarez, a Buffalo native currently based in Los Angeles, told The Post.
Ultimately, she dove back in, qualifying for the Olympics in February at the World Aquatic Championships in Qatar.
Now, she’s about to make history as the first American artistic swimmer to compete in three Olympics.
“I knew I had more in me. I still loved the sport,” she said. But “it was a difficult journey back [mentally and physically] — trusting my body again and being able to still enjoy what I do and not have that fear.”
After the freak accident, medical tests ruled out cardiovascular and neurological issues. But her iron and hemoglobin levels were found to be low
“We’re pushing our bodies to the max,” Alvarez said. “It was a combination of a lot of different things and it all built up.”
Kyle Dake, 33, Wrestling
Dake began wrestling at age 4, making his mark on the mat just like his father and grandfather did before him.
This past April, his dad —— Doug Dake, an All-American wrestler at Kent State in Ohio — died at age 62, leaving him heartbroken.
“It happened pretty quickly. It was really tough on us,” said Dake, who wrestled at Cornell University. “We had a lot of deep conversations around wrestling and around life before he passed away.”
Nine days after losing his father, Dake competed in the Olympic Trials, earning a spot on the Olympic team for the second time. At the Tokyo Olympics, he earned the bronze medal in the 74-kilogram men’s freestyle.
On Aug. 10, he’ll again compete in men’s freestyle event. The oldest wrestler on Team USA, he’s most looking forward to bringing his family — wife Megan, daughters EllaJo, 5, and Emilia, 3, and son, Leo, 2.
“The kids come to practice once a week and help daddy do his workouts. They’re really excited. It puts in perspective what’s really important.”
Charlotte Buck, 29, Rowing
A theater kid growing up, Buck didn’t try rowing until her freshman year at Columbia University, at the urging of her older sister.
“I basically joined to make friends and I just fell in love,” she told The Post. “Who else gets to see New York City from the Harlem River? It’s just a special way to be part of New York.”
She competed in the Tokyo Olympics in the women’s eight event, where her boat narrowly missed the medal stand, placing fourth.
This time around, the Nyack native is hoping for some hardware — and looking forward to enjoying the games without COVID restrictions.
“I’m excited to do the whole Olympic thing and get to see other sports,” she said.
Jack Yonezuka, 21, Judo
The youngest member of the US Olympic Judo team hails from a Judo dynasty.
His father, Nick Yonezuka, competed in the 1980 games, and his late grandfather Yoshisada Yonezuka coached two Olympic teams.
“I was born into the sport,” Yonezuka told The Post. He started the Japanese martial art and combat sport at the tender age of 5, but the West Long Branch, NJ, native didn’t always love it.
“I remember not wanting to go to Judo most days and my parents would push me to go anyway. They knew Judo would teach me very valuable life lessons,” he said.
Coming up in the ranks, he had a standout career. In 2023, he became the first US judo competitor to win two medals at the Junior World Championships.
Post-Paris the master hopes to become the teacher, just like his late grandfather, who founded the club Cranford Judo JKC.
“I would definitely want to go into coaching after my competitive career,” Yonezuka told The Post.
“And I hope to either become a physical education teacher or a physiotherapist. I haven’t fully decided that yet.”
For now, he’s enjoying the present.
“I told myself that this is a once in a lifetime opportunity and to take full advantage of the moment and go win that medal,” he said.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, 24, 400-meter hurdles & 400-meter sprint
This will be the third Olympics for the track star who hails from New Brunswick, NJ, and competed in the Brazil games at the tender age of 16.
Last month, she broke her own world record in the women’s 400 hurdles at the Olympic trials in Oregon, powering through to the finish line in a staggering 50.65 seconds — a feat that even shocked her.
“Honestly, praise God, I was not expecting that,” a stunned McLaughlin-Levrone told reporters following the race. “I’m just amazed, baffled and in shock.”
It was the fifth time she’s broken a record in the 10-hurdle event. On Aug. 8, in the Olympics finals, she’ll aim for a sixth record.
“I would love to dip under 50 [seconds] at some point,” McLaughlin-Levrone told CNN. “I don’t know if that’s this year or if that’s next year. Just always chipping away, seeing what’s possible and continuing to improve the race.”