SFHS Alumni at the Olympics

St. Francis High School celebrates alumni competing in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic games. Three Spartan alumnae; Erin Virtue '01, Kelsey Robinson '10, and Sze En Tan '19, set their sights on Olympic gold. Both Erin and Kelsey are part of the USA Women's Volleyball Olympic Team. Erin serves as the team's Offensive Coordinator, while Kelsey-already an Olympic medalist-is an athlete on the team.

 

In catching up with SFHS alumni for the summer issue of Focus Magazine, Erin and Kelsey discussed how their time at St. Francis High School played an integral role in course of their lives.

 

“St. Francis provided the necessary building blocks to help me be more than just an athlete. While I train for my second Olympics, I also have written a cookbook, developed a photography brand, and written for travel & lifestyle magazines. St. Francis gave me the foundation to be well rounded and the skills to follow all my passions.” says Kelsey.

 

Erin adds. “As I reflect on my career in volleyball, I often think about my time at St. Francis, working with Mr. Lynch. One HUGE lesson he taught me was that connection with each teammate and attacker would make all the difference in running an effective offense. He advised me to walk over to each attacker, give them a high-five, and tell them the play

that they would be running. This lesson is something that I bring to my job every single day. I am now the Offensive Coordinator for our USA Volleyball Olympic Team, and our setters are taught this very same lesson - they are setting

‘people’ not just a system. That personal connection is massive in volleyball, and in life. I am so grateful for my time at St. Francis and all the lessons learned. Thank you, Mr. Lynch for that early schooling.”

 

SFHS alumna and current Stanford University sophomore, Sze En Tan’19 is representing Singapore in the artistic gymnastic competition. She is the 2016 and 2018 Singapore national champion and was named Senior International Athlete of the Year at the 2020 Singapore Gymnastics Awards.

 

Also worth noting, alumnus, Jeff Jendryk ‘14 was selected as an alternate for the USA Men’s Volleyball Olympic Team. Jeff is currently an athlete on the USA Men's National Volleyball Team.

 

The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games take place Friday, July 23 – Sunday, August 8, 2021. Tune into your local NBC station for primetime coverage or watch the games streaming on NBCOlympics.com, NBC Sports, and Peacock.