Local News

Student-athletes want to play

First photo: Maui High School security guard Enola Planas and her twin sons Keokolo (left) and Kaha, 10-year-old 5th-graders at Waihee Elementary School, protest the cancellation of HHSAA state tournaments that had been tentatively set for March. They joined a group of about 25 sign-wavers gathered in front of Sears in the Queen Ka'ahumanu Center on Monday afternoon to protest the recent cancellation of winter sports state tournaments by the Hawaii High School Athletic Association due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The event largely involved members and supporters of the Baldwin High School wrestling team. Organizer Kevin Grant, the wrestling coach at Iao Intermediate School, said the decision to protest came from the student-athletes, led by senior Kahilihiwa Joy. "The kids initiated this through their social media like Instagram and it rooted from Kahili and the Baldwin wrestlers," said Grant, the Iao media teacher. "We have a few supportive people who are teachers." Maui Interscholastic League athletic directors have a meeting scheduled for this morning where the schedule and which sports will go forward will be discussed, according to several sources.

Second photo: Akamu Flores, 10, shows his support from the shoulders of three-time state champion Coby Ravida, a 2020 Baldwin grad.