Felipe Vergara & Felipe Garcia Victors in LI Marathon

Felipe Vergara (right) , 44, was the victor in year's LI Marathon with a men's time of 2:34:12.

Felipe Garcia (left), 26, won the half-marathon with a time of 1:09:09.

The men -- Mexican immigrants -- are repeat winners of their respective races, and sponsored my Mi Territa, a Colombian Latino restaurant in the Village of Hempstead.

Other high finishers in the marathon include: 2nd placer finisher Carlos Sauce, 30, 2:43:33; 5th place finisher Mario Dimas, 26, 2:46:09; and seventh place finisher Jaime Palacios, 54, 2:49:36.

Carlos Techera, 21, had the 8th best time in the half marathon.

Alexis Fernandez, 13, was third best time among the women -- and 1st in her age division -- in the 5K at 20:20.

Nassau County Legislator Dave Mejias, 38, finished 7th in the 1 mile race with a time of 8:09.

Full Results

Angel Rojas Wins Westhampton Beach Hurricane 5K; Jorge Flores Captures Triple Crown

Hampton Bays’ Angel Rojas, 22, won Saturday's Hurricane 5K in Westhampton Beach in 17 minutes, 23 seconds.

Other Latinos with terrific outings, include: Water Mill’s Doroteo Soledad, 33, who won the Quogue Hudsy 5K a week earlier, netting fourth place in 18:23; and 37 year old Jorge Flores (East Hampton) with a 7th place showing at 18:33.

Flores won the Hamptons Triple Crown with the best overall performance in the season's 5K competitions: 7th at the Hurricane, 4th at the Hudsy, and a 16th at the Koziarz. (Rojas did not compete in the Koziarz - a race won by NYC/Mexico's Antonio Blas, 23, with a time of 16:34.)

Twelve-year-old Isabella Torres of Westhampton was first across the line in the 12-and-under group (24:26).

Photos: top - Angel Rojas (L) in the red top and blue shorts at the start of the Hurricane 5K (by Brett Mauser); bottom - Antonio Blas at the 18th annual Joe Koziarz Memorial 5K (See photo series on 27East).

More

Dara Torres: Quogue's Olympic Champion

Dara Grace Torres is the amazing 41 year old U.S. swimmer who has won twelve Olympic medals (four gold, four silver, four bronze) across five Olympics: 1984, 1988, 1992, 2000, and 2008.

She competed in the Beijing Olympic Games in the 50 meter freestyle, 4×100 medley relay, and 4×100 freestyle relay and won the silver medal in all three of these events.

Torres, who was born in Beverly Hills, California, was the fifth of six children and older of two girls. Her Cuban American father, Eddie Torres, was a Havana Casino manager turned American real estate developer and casino magnate. Her mother, Marylu, is a former fashion model.

According to East End's The Independent, Torres and her siblings spent their childhood summers in Quogue, swimming at the Surf Club.

Links:
Torres Soars to Olympic Glory
Dara Torres is propelled by her father's memory
Swimmer Dara Torres' Olympic appearance is one for the ages
Chip Venues & Their History: Cuba
Dara Torres website

Alan Garcia Beats the Odds

Alan Garcia, 22 years old, is the jockey who rode Da'Tara to an upset victory over Triple Crown contender Big Brown in the Long Island Belmont Stakes this past Saturday. Da'Tara was a 38-1 long shot.

Native of Lima, Peru, Garcia currently resides in Tinton Falls, New Jersey.

Related:
Big Brown

LI Festival of Races Update: Latinos Excel in Marathon, Half Marathon, 10K, 5K

Latino runners performed well in this weekend's Long Island Festival of Races.

Carlos Sauce (02:36:23) finished 2nd and Julio Sauce (02:42:03) finished 4th in the Long Island Festival of Races's Marathon; both are from Brooklyn. Jaime Palacios of Fresh Meadows, Queens finished 7th (06:45:00).

In the half marathon, Felipe Garcia (01:11:48) of Brooklyn took 1st place; Franklin Diaz (01:13:11) of South Farmingdale came in 2nd; and Angel Confesor (01:15:45) of Brooklyn finished 4th.

In the 10K, Maria Morales (00:37:56) of Brentwood finished 2nd; while Mauricio Duarte (00:39:16) of Mineola finished 3rd. Nassau Legislator (D-Farmingdale) David Mejias finished a respectable 201st (out of 700 runners) with a time of 00:56:29.

Franklin Diaz w0n the 5K race with a time of 16:09:00.

(Newsday Photo 1 - Carlos Sauce; Photo 2 - David Mejias)

South Farmingdale's Franklin Diaz Wins LI Festival of Races 5K

This weekend is the Long Island Festival of Races. Upwards of 8,000 runners are expected to compete in a four separate races: 5K, 10K, Half Marathon (13.1 miles)and Marathon (26.2 miles). The Marathon is Sunday, May 4th, starting on Charles Lindbergh Blvd. in Nassau County's Hub district and finishing in Eisenhower Park.

The newly added 5K race was run today . The runner was the best time was South Farmingdale's Franklin Diaz, 24 years, with a completion time of 16:09:00. New York City's Edwin Acosta clocked the 4th best time at 18:48:00. And Jaime Orellana St.James ranked 12th at 21:04:00.

The photo is of Franklin Diaz receiving the 2007 Greater Long Island Running Club Award.

GOOOOOOL!! Fútbol takes root on Long Island

Fútbol or soccer--a true world sport--is finally taking root on Long Island.

Not only is it the nost popular girls sport in suburbia, but Latino immigrants have brought the spirited international version to fields across Long Island.

Leagues have formed sponsoring weekend competitions for men, women and children from Corona to Montauk.

The largest league serving Nassau and Suffolk, Long Island Hispanic Soccer Federation, fields 64 mens teams (18 yrs+) and 8 teams for young women ages 15-21. The season runs April through November with games held Sundays at various venues throughout the two counties.

Long Island Hispanic Soccer Federation
135 Elizabeth Ave.
Hempstead, NY
516-902-8733 (Englis/Spanish)
516-376-7426 (Spanish)
E-mail address: supersonido3@aol.com