Locals will help celebrate the milestone installation of new artificial turf at Dunning Field with a special ceremony honoring three outstanding athletes who call New Canaan their hometown.
Newly re-turfed Dunning Field, home of the NCHS Rams. Credit: Terry Dinan
On Friday, Sept. 16—the night of the New Canaan High School varsity Rams football team’s home game, at 7 p.m. versus Ridgefield—Olympians Andrew Campbell Jr., Charlie Cole and Thomas Dunstan will be recognized for making it all the way to Rio de Janeiro in rowing (Campbell and Cole) and water polo (Dunstan).
Conceived and organized by New Canaan resident Tucker Murphy, with coordination from others including NCHS Athletic Director Jay Egan and First Selectman Rob Mallozzi, plans for the 16th include a proclamation read by New Canaan’s highest elected official and possibly video clips of the athletes in action on the scoreboard screen.
“We had three kids from New Canaan, Connecticut go to the Olympics and do very, very well—just getting there is a huge feat—so why not come together and show them how proud we are of them and all they’ve accomplished?” Murphy said.
She added that the athletes are an inspiration to New Canaan youth.
Campbell and Cole are able to attend the game in person, while Dunstan—currently at USC—will be represented by members of his family, Murphy said.
Dunning Stadium will showcase its sorely needed, new turf thanks to the generosity of many donors and the New Canaan Athletic Foundation.
That project came together incredibly quickly thanks to the diligence of those who volunteer with the NCAF, from no work or planning at the end of spring to all of that— raising money for the nearly $600,000 project, putting out an RFP, hiring a turf consultant, selecting contractors, earning town approval and then the physical work of replacing the turf itself—in about three months, according to NCAF Board of Directors Chairman Mike Benevento.
“Getting a project of this scale done from mid-June inception to completion by Labor Day is unprecedented,” Benevento said when asked about the imminent unveiling. “The generous donations from a few New Canaan residents and the hard work of the New Canaan Athletic Foundation ensured that come this fall season, our community athletes would be playing in the best facility in the state.”
The U.S. Olympic Men’s Water Polo Team was unable to advance to the quarterfinals in Rio, though bested Italy 10-7 in a thrilling final match there—and Dunstan played a major role, scoring a key game-tying goal to make it 5-5 in the second quarter.
Campbell narrowly missed medaling in the men’s lightweight double sculls, coming in fifth place in the final at 6:35:07, less than four seconds off of the third-place (Norway) mark. Cole competed in the men’s coxless four and finished first in the B-Final at 5:59:20.
[Editor’s Note: We updated the headline on this article to read ‘Football Game’ instead of ‘Home Opener.’]