July 13, 2022

Sports

Endorsing Leslie Danks Burke

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The Talk at

YOUR LETTERS Endorsing Lea Webb

Sivi Subramaniam, CU student and rising pro squash star, was injured in her native Malaysia (Photo: File)

CU Squash Star In Malaysian Car Crash

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By St ev e L aw r e nc e

kay, friends and readers...this is a call to action. I would be very grateful if you would go to the Caring Bridge link I am providing and send a message of support to Sivasangari “Sivi” Subramaniam, the Cornell student featured in this column in March after winning the NCAA Division 1 individual squash national championship. Sivi was seriously injured in an automobile accident in her home country of Malaysia a few days ago, and it will be some time before it is known just what lies ahead for the world class squash player.

I spoke to David Palmer, Sivi’s coach at Cornell, and he said, “This was a major shock to all of us.” Given Malaysia is 12 hours ahead of New York, Coach Palmer received one of those chilling middle-ofthe-night phone calls that no one ever wants to get. “Wen Li Lai–her teammate here at Cornell who is also from Malaysia– called me and informed me that Sivi was in a car accident, and she was in surgery,” Palmer said. “It was a long night, waiting for further word.”

A few hours later, Palmer was able to connect with his number one player, and he said, “I spoke to her, and while she has serious facial injuries, and a broken cheekbone and jaw, she was able to feel her legs and upper body.” He added, “She also has a small fracture in her C-1 vertebrae, and she will be wearing a body brace for a few weeks. After that, we will see to what extent the injury heals on its own, and it will then be determined whether she will need to have a bolt inserted.” Taking a deep breath after explaining Sivi’s situation yet again, David said, “I believe that over the long term she will be back to where she was, or even better.”

Prior to the accident, Sivi was having an incredible 2022. After reaching the semifinals and finals in her first two seasons, Subramaniam capped off a dominant 19-0 junior year by winning the NCAA individual championship with a dramatic five-game victory over Harvard’s Hana Moataz. After that historic accomplishment, she returned home and joined the professional tour. She was number 16 in the world (according to Palmer, “She was close to breaking into the top ten on the pro circuit,”) and she was chosen to be her country’s flag bearer at the Commonwealth Games. But that honor will have to wait.

According to Palmer, Sivi has plenty of support on her path to recovery. He said, “It’s so ironic that Sivi travels around the world for competitions, and she gets injured so close to home.” I asked David if his initial impulse after getting that jarring phone call was to get on a plane, and he said, “Believe me, it crossed my mind,” and he added, “All things considered, she is in the perfect place, with her mom and dad, and she has tremendous support from the Malaysian Sports Government, and from Cornell.” Palmer called Sivi “one of the biggest sports personalities in Malaysia,” and he added “She is on track to be one of our sport’s next superstars.”

Looking ahead, the coach said, “Sivi’s plan was to play in the Asian Games, the Commonwealth Games (as well as several pro tournaments) and return to Cornell in the Spring. Right now, we are taking it one week at a time.” He too is grateful that the passerby had the courage and compassion to pull Sivi from the car after the collision with a truck, and he acknowledged that “a lot of things could have gone long-term bad.”

As promised, the Caring Bridge link: www.caringbridge.org/visit/getwellsiva Please join me in sending well wishes to this Big Red athlete.

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recently had the pleasure of meeting Lea Webb and came away from that encounter with great enthusiasm for her candidacy for State Senate. Lea is a different kind of candidate--she’s a public servant, not a politician. She is deeply concerned with the needs of people in the district and in the state and focuses her energy on promoting solutions to those needs, rather than self-promotion. In addition to serving eight years on the Binghamton City Council (the first Black person ever to serve) she worked for Citizen Action promoting health care for all, and has been a leader with Vote Run Lead, training women around the country to run for elected office. We need to elect a highly qualified candidate with experience and the ability to understand the complexity of voters’ lives. As someone who worked for many years in human service organizations, including as executive director of Hospicare and Suicide Prevention and Interim Director of Planned Parenthood, I am especially enthusiastic about Lea Webb’s humanitarian background and commitment.

Nina Miller, Ithaca

grew up in Binghamton and live in Ithaca, and I support Leslie Danks Burke in the Democratic primary for New York State Senate. With these two cities that I love together in a newly-drawn district, I’m looking for the candidate with experience and dedication to fight hard for our region, and I know that’s Leslie. She ran before when the district was gerrymandered, even though other Democrats sat aside, and now her dedication means we have a foundation to win. As a special education teacher, I know that Leslie has been standing up for years for public education and the needs of all children in our schools.

Jennifer Curley, Ithaca

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eslie Danks Burke is my choice in the Democratic primary to be our next State Senator. I’ve known Leslie for 16 years. Back when we first met, Leslie was the mom of a toddler, and also a lawyer doing interesting international work, but she also made time to volunteer with me to get out the vote. I then worked closely with Leslie when she became chair and I was secretary of our local Democratic committee. Over the years, I’ve seen Leslie fight hard for the Democratic values I care about, and I want her fighting on the Senate floor for us. I’ve watched Leslie stand up for truth and honesty, even when it meant she had to have hard conversations with others, and I want her honesty in politics.

Patricia Leary, Ithaca

JULY 13–19, 2022

/ THE ITHACA TIMES

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