A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of swimming, cycling, and running over various distances. Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the time transitioning between the disciplines included. The word is of Greek origin, from τρεῖς or treis (three) and ἆθλος or athlos (competition).
Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities providing year-round training and activities to 5 million participants and Unified Sports partners in 172 countries. Special Olympics competitions are held daily, all around the world—including local, national and regional competitions, adding up to more than 100,000 events a year. Like the International Paralympic Committee, the Special Olympics organization is recognized by the International Olympic Committee; however, unlike the Paralympic Games, Special Olympics World Games are not held in the same year nor in conjunction with the Olympic Games.
Coney Island is a peninsular neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach to its east, Lower New York Bay to the south and west, and Gravesend to the north and includes the subsection of Sea Gate on its west. More broadly, the Coney Island peninsula consists of Coney Island proper, Brighton Beach, and Manhattan Beach. This was formerly the westernmost of the Outer Barrier islands on the southern shore of Long Island, but in the early 20th century it became a peninsula, connected to the rest of Long Island by land fill.
Topsy was a female Asian elephant who was electrocuted at Coney Island, New York, in January 1903. Born in Southeast Asia around 1875, Topsy was secretly brought into the United States soon thereafter and added to the herd of performing elephants at the Forepaugh Circus, who fraudulently advertised her as the first elephant born in the United States. During her 25 years at Forepaugh, Topsy gained a reputation as a "bad" elephant and, after killing a spectator in 1902, was sold to Coney Island's Sea Lion Park. Sea Lion was leased out at the end of the 1902 season and during the construction of the park that took its place, Luna Park, Topsy was used in publicity stunts and also involved in several well-publicized incidents, attributed to the actions of either her drunken handler or the park's new publicity-hungry owners, Frederic Thompson and Elmer "Skip" Dundy.
The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It has more than 700,000 members nationwide, including more than 100,000 volunteers. The philosophy of the AAU is "Sports for All, Forever."
The Detroit Zoo is a zoo located in the cities of Huntington Woods and Royal Oak in the U.S. state of Michigan. Spanning 125 acres (50.6 ha), it houses more than 2,000 animals and more than 200 different species. It was the first U.S. zoo to feature bar-less habitats, and is regarded to be an international leader in animal welfare, conservation and sustainability by the Detroit Zoological Society.
Young Judaea is a peer-led Zionist youth movement that runs programs throughout the United States for Jewish youth in grades 2–12. In Hebrew, Young Judaea is called Yehuda Hatzair or is sometimes referred to as Hashachar (השחר), lit. "the dawn". Founded in 1909, it is the oldest Zionist youth movement in the United States.
USA Swimming is the national governing body for competitive swimming in the United States. It is charged with selecting the United States Olympic Swimming team and any other teams that officially represent the United States, as well as the overall organization and operation of the sport within the country, in accordance with the Olympic and Amateur Sports Act. The national headquarters of USA Swimming is located at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Winter swimming is the activity of swimming during the winter season, typically in outdoor locations or in unheated pools or lidos. In colder countries, it may be synonymous with ice swimming, when the water is frozen over. This requires either breaking the ice or entering where a spring prevents the formation of ice. It may also be simulated by a pool of water at 0 °C (32 °F), the temperature at which water freezes.
The Coney Island Mermaid Parade is an art parade held annually in Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York. The event, the largest art parade in the United States, is held each year in June and celebrates the arrival of the summer season. Created and produced by the non-profit arts organization Coney Island USA, the 40th annual parade was held on June 18, 2022.
The Law Enforcement Torch Run (LETR) is a campaign to benefit the Special Olympics. It began in 1981 in Wichita, Kansas, and is the largest grass-roots fundraising movement for the Special Olympics.
Stillwell Avenue is a major two-way north–south thoroughfare in southern Brooklyn and the central section of Coney Island. It is 2.4 miles (3.9 km) long and begins at a dead end at Riegelmann Boardwalk on Coney Island. The road goes north, leaving Coney Island, ending at Bay Parkway, where the road continues as the Bay Ridge Parkway. On December 11, 2008, it acquired the subsidiary name Polar Bear Club Walk, named for the Coney Island Polar Bear Club. The Stillwell Avenue/Surf Avenue intersection on Coney Island is the location of the Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue subway station, a major subway station in New York City.
Lea Loveless Maurer, née Lea E. Loveless, is an American former competition swimmer, Olympic champion, and former college swimming coach. She represented the United States at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, where she won a gold medal swimming the backstroke leg of the women's 4×100-meter medley relay. She also won a bronze medal in the 100-meter backstroke. She was the head coach of the Stanford University women's swimming and diving team from 2005 to 2012.
A polar bear plunge is an event held during the winter where participants enter a body of water despite the low temperature. In the United States, polar bear plunges are usually held to raise money for a charitable organization. In Canada, polar bear swims are usually held on New Year's Day to celebrate the new year.
Gordon John Buchanan is a Scottish wildlife filmmaker and presenter. His work includes the nature documentaries Tribes, Predators & Me, The Polar Bear Family & Me and Life in the Snow.
Knut was an orphaned polar bear born in captivity at the Berlin Zoological Garden. Rejected by his mother at birth, he was raised by zookeepers. He was the first polar bear cub to survive past infancy at the Berlin Zoo in more than 30 years. At one time the subject of international controversy, he became a tourist attraction and commercial success. After the German tabloid newspaper Bild ran a quote from an animal rights activist that decried keeping the cub in captivity, fans worldwide rallied in support of his being hand-raised by humans. Children protested outside the zoo, and e-mails and letters expressing sympathy for the cub's life were sent from around the world.
Waukesha North High School is one of three high schools located in Waukesha, Wisconsin. Operated by the Waukesha School District, the school opened in mid-year, at the start of the second semester, during the 1974-1975 school year. The school is part of the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association and the Classic 8 Conference in athletics. North's nickname is the "Northstars" and the school mascot is the polar bear, "Sparky"
Swim Across America Inc., (SAA) is a nonprofit dedicated to raising money and awareness for cancer research, prevention, and treatment. It does so by hosting charity swims and donating the proceeds to a hospital. Since its founding, SAA has granted over $100 million to fund cancer research and clinical trials. More than 100,000 donations a year are made to support participants in Swim Across America charity swims to meet their fundraising goals. The proceeds from SAA charity swims are granted to fund cancer research at world-renowned hospitals such as Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and Johns Hopkins.
The L Street Brownies are a polar bear club based in South Boston, Massachusetts. Organized in 1902, it is one of the oldest such clubs in the United States. Although the Brownies swim year round, they are best known for their annual New Year's Day plunge in Dorchester Bay.
Kaiser Park is a public park on the northwestern coast of Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York City. It abuts Coney Island Creek, Gravesend Bay, and Coney Island Creek Park and is across Coney Island Creek from Calvert Vaux Park and Six Diamonds Park.
