honoluluadvertiser.com

Sponsored by:

Comment, blog & share photos

Log in | Become a member
The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Napoleon, Miyawaki get call from Hall

Advertiser Staff

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Joseph "Nappy" Napoleon

spacer spacer
Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Edison H. Miyawaki

spacer spacer

Joseph "Nappy" Napoleon, a Moloka'i Hoe fixture, and professional sports owner and benefactor Edison H. Miyawaki have been named to the Hawai'i Sports Hall of Fame, it was announced yesterday

They will be inducted during a Feb. 26 banquet at Honolulu Country Club, pushing the number of honorees to 103 since the Hall began inductions in 1998.

Napoleon, 66, paddled in his first Moloka'i Hoe, the unofficial world's championship of long-distance team canoe paddling, in 1958 at age 17. He has competed in the 41-mile crossing from Molokai's Hale O Lono Harbor to Waikiki's Duke Kaha-namoku Beach for 50 consecutive years. This year he did it with 'Anuenue Canoe Club sons Joey, Aaron, Darryn, David and Jonah and grandsons Josh, Sepa and Koa.

Miyawaki, 78, is the chief executive officer of Family Health I and II. He is a co-owner of the Cincinnati Bengals and an investor in the Boston Celtics. He is believed to be the first Asian-American to have an ownership interest in an NFL franchise. In the 1970s, Miyawaki established an NFL training camp for aspiring Hawai'i athletes.

The Hawai'i Sports Hall of Fame was established in 1997.

Tickets to the banquet are priced at $100 and may be purchased through the Hall of Fame (540-5705) or by calling 550-9207.

Nominations for the next class may be made online at www.hawaiisportshalloffame.com or by writing to the Hawai'i Sports Hall of Fame at P.O. Box 1518, Honolulu 96806-1518.

Make a difference. Donate to The Advertiser Christmas Fund.