Dmitriy Salita, the champion boxer who has made headlines as a successful Orthodox professional athlete, spoke to a crowd of more than 300 fans, parents, coaches, and athletes at The Frisch School’s fifth annual Sports Breakfast on Sunday morning, May 18.  Salita spoke about his exposure to Orthodox Judaism upon his emigration from Odessa to the United States and how he successfully meshed a professional boxing career with his religious observance.  Among many things, Salita spoke about his observance of the Sabbath and how it impacted his boxing matches.

The Sports Breakfast recognizes the accomplishments, dedication, and support of The Frisch School Cougar Family. Frisch Athletics boasts 26 boys and girls varsity and junior varsity teams in more than 10 sports. The 2014 Sports Breakfast included a special presentation of a championship banner to the 1982-83 Frisch Boys Varsity Basketball team, Frisch’s first-ever boys Yeshiva High School League champions. We are proud that three of the team members are currently Frisch parents themselves!

The Sports Breakfast marks the culmination of the “Support the Cougar” grant-matching campaign run in conjunction with the AVI CHAI Foundation. The grant focuses on using social media to tell the story of Frisch Athletics in order to raise funds in support of the athletic program. For every dollar raised through the Annual Sports Breakfast and the associated “Support the Cougar” campaign, AVI CHAI matched dollar for dollar up to $500 per individual gift. Gifts can still be made at sportsbreakfast.frisch.org.