As the fall sports season wraps up, we’ll be profiling two standout athletes from schools in the area, nominated by their athletic directors. Today's athletes are from Essex High School. 

Michael DiMambro

Grade: 12

Sport: Football

What were your best and worst moments of the season? Worst: struggling in the decathlon in shot put, and discus. Best: Coming in eighth place in the National Junior Olympic decathlon. 

Do you play other sports? Which is your favorite? I also play football and basketball.  My favorite sport out of the three is football. 

Do you plan to play/run in college? Yes.  I hope to run track in college and compete as a decathlete. 

Who is your favorite athlete? My favorite athlete is LeBron James. 

What other activities do you do? Play golf, hang out with friends, and watch football.

What is your least favorite school subject? Math.

If you could just know one language without having learning it, what would it be? Spanish.

If you could communicate with one animal, what would it be? A dog.

Name something that really annoys you. Losing! At anything.

If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be? I would eat Baby Back Ribs.

If you could be a celebrity for a day, who would you be? I would be Denzel Washington.

If you had to get a tattoo, what would you get? My initials on my arms.

From the AD: "‘Fastest man in Vermont,’ state champion as a junior in the 100 and 200, finished in 8th place at the NATIONAL decathlon championships in California this summer, Gatorade Vermont Athlete of the Year in Track & Field last year, recently named VSSA Vermont Outstanding Athlete for July, outstanding receiver in football. Great kid, good student,” wrote Essex Athletic Director Ed Hockenbury.  

 

Markie Palermo

Grade: 10

Sport: Cross-country

What were your best and worst moments of the season?  My best moments were winning my first varsity race ever and winning the Vermont State Championship race.  I haven't really had a bad moment in my season because I feel that I have improved in every race and I have learned a lot from each of them.

Do you play other sports? Which is your favorite?  I also run indoor and outdoor track, but cross-country is my favorite.

Do you plan to run in college?  Yes.

Who is your favorite athlete?  Mia Hamm.

What other activities do you do?  Kayaking, swimming, snowshoeing, and also I participate in environmental clean-up.

What is your least favorite school subject?  I don't have a least favorite school subject, because in every area of study I learn something, and that makes each learning experience a good one.

If you could just know one language without having to learn it, what would it be?  I would like to know Latin because so many words from all the languages come from Latin roots.

If you could communicate with one animal, what would it be?  I would communicate with the cheetah, the fastest land animal on earth, because I would like to know what its thinking is.

Name something that really annoys you.  Something that annoys me is how sexism and any prejudice against any person still exists— that that sort of ignorance still exists today.

If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?  Coffee ice cream.

If you could be a celebrity for a day, who would you be?  I would be Kelly Clarkson because it is so inspiring to me that her singing, writing, and composing talents were apparent so early in her life and that she came out of a normal, everyday living circumstance and became famous using these talents.

If you had to get a tattoo, what would you get?  I would never put ink in my skin, but if I were to choose a symbol, it would be a moon with a star because I love that beauty in the night.

From the AD: "One of the best (perhaps the best) runners in Vermont. (She) very serious injuries suffered in a skiing accident. Prior to the accident she was a soccer player, but could not continue to do sports involving contact so switched to running and is amazing,” wrote Essex Athletic Director Ed Hockenbury.