Young athletes honored by Cobb commissioners

The Cobb County Board of Commissioners honored young Cobb County athletes who won state championships at the 2017 Georgia Recreation and Park Association (GRPA) Class A State Track Meet.

Jimmy Gisi, the director of Cobb County’s Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Affairs Department, before introducing the individual winners, said,

There are few things more rewarding than when we recognize our young people, who have excelled in their educational, their civic, or athletic endeavors.  Unfortunately, our society typically focuses only on the negatives. But we’re here tonight to recognize the positives.  Track and field programs are offered to our youth in Cobb County by several different organizations. However, at the end of the spring season, all these athletes come together under the Cobb County Parks umbrella, to compete against other athletes from across the state, through the Georgia Recreation and Park Association. The first step is for them to place in the top three in their events in the Cobb County qualifier. Two hundred and ninety-six track stars qualified this year to represent Cobb County at the GRPA District 5 track meet. The next step was for the athlete to place in the top three in their event at the district event. Cobb County had 107 youth ages 7-14 advance past district, into the GRPA state track meet, that was held May 5 and 6 in Augusta.  This year that included 1,640 athletes from all across our great state.

Here is a list of the winners, provided by the Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Affairs Department: