Madison athletes earn gold in Sports Festival
Three Madison athletes competed in the annual Olympic-style games in Birmingham in master’s track events, with all three winning gold medals.
Thomas Gill finished first in the men’s 100-meter dash in the 65-69 age group. He ran a time of 15.32 to beat Golden Bertram, also of Madison, by 0.83 of a second.
In the men’s triathlon competition, Madison’s Rick Greif topped the 55-59 age group with a time of 1:16:35.00.
Madison’s younger athletes also had success in the festival, including Griffin Ridgeway, who won the 80-pound novice wresting title with a win over Reid Singles of Huntsville.
Starz 94 won the U-14 boys’ title after scoring 15 goals in two wins.
Medals are awarded based on points earned in the tournament. Teams receive six points for a win and three for a tie. Additionally, teams can earn one point for a shutout and one point for each goal scored in a game with a limit of three points.
The team opened the tournament with an 8-0 victory over East Limestone. The Starz 94 team closed out the tournament with a 7-1 win over Gulf Shores United in the championship game.
The Southern Starz 12-and-under basketball team, coached by William Garth, won the gold medal in the tournament after winning four games in two days.
The Southern Starz opened the tournament Friday with a 51-30 victory over Northwest Alabama Shooters.
Playing three games Saturday, the Southern Starz dominated their opponents on the way to a 46-25 win in the final against Starz Seldon.
The Southern Starz outscored opponents 189-89.
The Alabama Sports Festival is celebrating its 26th consecutive year for the games that rotate between Huntsville, Mobile and Birmingham. The games opened with the traditional Olympic-style march of athletes and the lighting of the ceremonial flame.
There will be representatives from all across Alabama in events such as baseball, softball, archery, swimming, diving, gymnastics, soccer, tennis, wrestling, track and field, cycling, and basketball among others.