Delle Donne named Special Olympics ambassador
WILMINGTON – Elena Delle Donne, the Wilmington native and the reigning WNBA rookie of the year, has been named a global ambassador for Special Olympics, according to her alma mater, Ursuline Academy.
The announcement will be made tomorrow with Delle Donne appearing at Ursuline via Google+ from Chicago, where she plays with the Sky. Delle Donne then will take questions from Ursuline students about her basketball career and her new role with Special Olympics.
Delle Donne has spoken at length about her sister, Lizzie, who was born with cerebral palsy and is autistic. Lizzie Delle Donne cannot see or hear and knows her sister by touch and scent. Elena Delle Donne told the Chicago Sun-Times last summer that she hopes to have her foundation, which would raise money for people with special needs, up and running this year.
Delle Donne will begin next week back home in Wilmington, running a clinic Monday afternoon at Ursuline before appearing at the Bob Carpenter Center during the Delaware 87ers game to raise awareness of Lyme disease. She then travels to New Orleans to play in the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game on Feb. 14.
St. Mark’s grad climbing collegiate wrestling rankings
WILMINGTON – Bobby Telford, a 2010 graduate of St. Mark’s High School who wrestles at the University of Iowa, was ranked first in the country at 285 lbs. in the Jan. 28 rankings by Amateur Wrestling News. Telford rose from third to first after defeating Tony Nelson of Minnesota on Jan. 25.
The victory was the 10th in a row for Telford, a redshirt junior, although the streak was snapped on Jan. 31 by Michael McMullan of Northwestern. He is 17-2 on the year for the Hawkeyes, who are ranked No. 3 in the country in the latest USA Today/National Wrestling Coaches Association/AWN Division I Coaches Poll.
Telford, a Hockessin native, placed third last season at the Big Ten Conference championships and earned an automatic bid to the NCAA championships. He won once in the NCAAs before defaulting because of an injury. At St. Mark’s, he was a two-time state champion and All-American, and he was named the outstanding wrestler at the 2010 state tournament.
