20th L.A. Summer Games Start Today
The 20th annual Los Angeles Summer Games--an outgrowth of the Watts Summer Games, which began after the 1965 Watts riots in an attempt to bring the youth of the area together--will start today throughout the city.
About 10,000 high school athletes are expected to compete in 12 sports until next weekend, when the final events will be held at El Camino College in Torrance. There is no admission charge at any of the venues.
In basketball, 128 teams will gather for what is believed to be the largest tournament of its kind in the nation. For the first time, the three-point shot from 19 feet 9 inches will be used, for both boys and girls.
Crenshaw has won five of the last six boys’ titles, including last year’s with a 72-68 victory over a Fairfax team that played without its two best players, Sean Higgins and Chris Mills, who were attending a summer basketball camp. Several of the top players will also be missing for the final weekend this year because they will be attending a camp in Princeton, N.J.
Other sports include baseball, football, gymnastics, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track, volleyball, water polo and wrestling.
Get our high school sports newsletter
Prep Rally is devoted to the SoCal high school sports experience, bringing you scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
