Local Heroes Athletes Enjoy Parade Despite Weather
It wasn’t your usual parade. No marching bands. No floats. No clowns throwing candy to the crowd, because, frankly, there wasn’t a crowd.
But there was enthusiasm. Plenty of it, bubbling from the more than 200 young athletes gathered in downtown Spokane under a gray, drippy sky for Saturday’s “Parade of Champions.”
“It’s pretty exciting,” said Asim Poston, an offensive tackle from Eastern Washington University’s football team. “Too bad the weather’s pretty bad.”
“I think it’s pretty neat because it’s the first one with all these sports and stuff,” said 10-year-old skating champion Lindsay Malcolm. A gold medal dangled from a ribbon around her neck.
At the urging of City Manager Bill Pupo, the Spokane Lilac Festival Association sponsored the parade to honor the region’s athletes, said Bill McKinney, the association’s vice president.
“It’s really been an unusual year, to see the number of athletes who’ve won state and national championships,” McKinney said. “We wanted to give them a forum to be recognized.”
Although invited, Washington State University’s Rose Bowl football team didn’t attend, McKinney said, adding that coaches were out eying recruits for next season.
Before the parade began, McKinney watched anxiously as the rain picked up, then returned to a trickle. He wondered if anyone would line the streets to cheer the champions.
“That’s one of the things we’re interested to find out. Are they going to walk down the streets and nobody’s there?”
“It’s a good day for a parade,” insisted Mayor John Talbott, as he posed for a photograph with two 1997 Lilac princesses.
Waiting for the 1 p.m. start, athletes, parents and coaches hid from the drizzle behind the Spokane School District 81 administration building at Main and Bernard. They drank hot chocolate and coffee, and muttered about the weather.
“They should have had this another month,” said one skater. “It’s really cold out here.”
A smattering of parents and sports fans dotted the three-block route as the parade got under way. They waved, cheered and captured the moment with videocameras as the grinning athletes strolled by.
Two giggling girls - soccer players from Riverside High School - weren’t the least bit bothered by the turnout. “We make the best of things,” said one. “We’ll still have fun,” said the other.
In 15 minutes, the parade was over. Many of the 100 or so spectators had followed along, urging the cheerleaders to cheer and the athletes to “stay in line.”
As he headed to his car, EWU wide receiver Joe Mitchell said he had a good time.
“I thought it was real cool for them to do this for us,” Mitchell said. “I kind of figured there wouldn’t be anybody here, but it was cool anyway.”
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 2 Color Photos
MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: CHAMPIONS Athletes in the parade represented these championship teams and competitions: University High 4A Boys Cross Country; Mt. Spokane 4A Boys Cross Country; Central Valley 4A Football; Northwest Regional Ice Skating Championships; St. George’s Girls A/B Soccer; Riverside 2A Girls Soccer; Lakeside 2A Boys Cross Country; East Valley 3A Girls Cross Country; Ferris 4A Girls Volleyball; and Eastern Washington University Volleyball and Football.