LAKE PLACID, N.Y., Feb. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- As competition gets under way
for the 1997 Empire State Winter Games, the figure skaters are preparing for
Saturday's competition at the Olympic Arena in downtown Lake Placid.
    The scholastic figure skaters are broken down into four divisions --
seniors, juniors, novice and intermediate.  17-year-old Laura De Luca from
Loudonville, NY won the silver in last year's junior competition, and is back
competing in juniors again this year.  However, winning gold isn't necessarily
her only purpose of competing this time around.  "I'm dealing with a new
program and this competition is more like an experience to get it out there
and try to become more comfortable with it.  If it goes like the way its been
going in practice then gold is a possibility."  De Luca has been skating for
almost eight years and is in her fourth year competing in the Empire State
Games.  "I'm looking for a national kind of experience before I go to college.
You have to take into account that there are a lot of great skaters.  You have
to do it because you want to do it," De Luca said regarding her future
aspirations.
    De Luca will be competing with, among others, Jennifer Cocker from
Webster, NY.   The silver medalist in last year's novice division of the
Empire State Games is celebrating her 15th birthday.  She has been skating
since she was 18 months old.   Also, 14-year old Kelly Ryan is looking to add
to her second place finish in last November's North Atlantic Regional
championships, which also took place in Lake Placid.  As part of the top four
finishers in that event, she also qualified for the Eastern Regional
championships.  "My uncle has a rink in his backyard and I put on a pair of
skates during the Super Bowl and I just started skating, then I wanted to take
lessons...I didn't care about the Super Bowl."  Ryan considers the double axel
to be her strong point and says skating a clean program is the most important
part to medalling in this event.
    From gold in the intermediate division last year to novice competition
this year, 15-year old Jessica Bloustein will be one of the favorites to medal
again.  She was a champion in the North Atlantic Regional competition three
years ago and has been a finalist in her class for the last three years.
     The Empire State Games is an event known for giving young athletes the
opportunity to compete, and the competitors can be as young as 12 years old.
One such youngster, Natalie Gladd from Bloomingdale, NY already understands
the important points that judges look for.  "The overall program counts and
not just the jumps.  You should flow on the ice and you can make it anywhere
if you don't have the artistic ability." Gladd, who is competing in the
intermediate competition, already has aspirations to compete in the 2002
Olympics in Salt Lake City.  She competed in this past year's North Atlantic
Regional championships, placing 11th out of 110 in the final round after a 3rd
place finish in the preliminary round.
   There is also male competition in figure skating and an open division,
which consists of athletes primarily out of high school.  Pairs competition
and precision teams also will light up the ice in competition that will last
all day Saturday.
    The Empire State Games opening ceremonies take place this evening and
competition in eight different sports, including the National Luge
championships, will run through until Sunday.
    The New York Lottery is the primary sponsor of the 1997 Empire State
Winter Games.  "The Games serve New York's young people by providing education
through athletics, teaching them dedication, motivation and aspiration to
achieve their goals," says Lottery director Jeff Perlee.  "The Lottery is
happy to sponsor the Empire State Games and salutes all athletes for their
commitment to excellence."

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