New York, NY -- (SBWIRE) -- 04/06/2016 -- A sportsmanship essay contest for New York City students has added an Olympic silver medalist and a women's professional basketball legend to its judging panel for 2016. New York Sports Connection today announced that fencer Tim Morehouse and Kym Hampton, a former center with the WNBA's New York Liberty, have joined WFAN Radio personality Craig Carton on the panel.

The trio will help judge sportsmanship essays submitted by 12- to 18-year-olds from across the City, notes Aaron Finkel, the founder of NewYorkSportsConnection.com. The NewYorkSportsConnection.com essay contest, now in its second year, encourages young residents of NYC to submit original essays on the theme, "What Role Does Sportsmanship Play in Youth Sports?" The contest deadline is April 30, and complete rules are available at http://www.NewYorkSportsConnection.com.

We are so pleased to welcome Kym and Tim to the panel," says Finkel. "They both started their careers as teen athletes, and they share a commitment to winning the right way—through hard work, superior performance and fair play."

A legend in women's professional basketball, in 1997 Kym Hampton tipped off the first-ever WNBA game in history, playing for The New York Liberty against the Los Angeles Sparks' Lisa Leslie. Hampton was the fourth pick overall in the first round of the WNBA Elite Draft, in The Liberty's first season. Although she retired from professional basketball in 2000 after a 15-year professional basketball career that had taken her all over the world, Hampton is still active as a community ambassador and spokesperson for The Liberty.

Hampton is no stranger to youth sports. She was a state track champion at Iroquois High School in Louisville, Kentucky, and was the starting center on both Kentucky All-Star and Kentucky East/West All-Star girls basketball teams. "Sports and Athletics is more than a game," she explains. "I applaud New York Sports Connection for challenging young athletes mentally as well as physically. I am excited to be a part of this program, and am looking forward to reading the essays."

A native of New York City, and a fencer since the age of 13, Tim Morehouse won the Silver Medal at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. It was one of three Olympic appearances for the sabre fencer. He is also a two-time individual U.S. National Champion, and winner of seven World Cup medals during his competitive career. "As youth sports continues to grow in America, I'm so honored to be a part of New York Sport's Connection's essay competition, which shines a spotlight on the importance of sportsmanship," says Morehouse. Sportsmanship is deeply ingrained in fencing, where each bout begins with a salute to ones' opponent and ends with a bare-handed handshake.

Morehouse is the founder of Fencing in the Schools, a non-profit organization dedicated to lluminating the potential of children through the sport of fencing. "When I started, I thought I was just playing a sport, but...while I was working on turning on the scoring light, I was also turning on my internal light," he explains on his website. The organization's mission is to help young people become "engaged, active, confident adults who can set goals and exceed them, lead a team, and have a positive impact on the world."

"Craig Carton is returning for his second year as a judge for the essay contest, which celebrates sportsmanship among NYC's thousands of young athletes," says Finkel. "As someone who has worked hard to help promote and develop youth sports in New York City, we really appreciate his returning to judge sportsmanship essays for another year."

Since 2007, Carton has co-hosted the Boomer and Carton In The Morning show with Boomer Esiason on WFAN Radio, a top-rated sports talk show in NYC that is heard nationally on the CBS Sports Network. Talkers Magazine has named Carton one of the top 100 "Most Important and Influential" talk show hosts in the U.S. for three straight years, and he is a former Radio and Records Talk Show Host of the Year.

Carton is also the founder and director of TicTocStop, a foundation that funds medical research for children and adults with Tourette's Syndrome. Carton was diagnosed with the neurological disorder as a teenager, and two of his four children also have Tourette's—a disorder that causes involuntary movements and vocalizations called "tics." The foundation also runs Camp Carton, a sleep away camp for kids with Tourette's.

About The Essay Contest
The New York Sports Connection essay contest is open to New York City residents who are between twelve and 18 years of age by the entry deadline of April 30, 2016. Young people are asked to write a 400-500 word essay inspired by the theme, "What Role Does Sportsmanship Play in Youth Sports?" More information and complete rules are available at NewYorkSportsConnection.com. The second-annual contest is presented with support from Modell's Sporting Goods.

About NewYorkSportsConnection.com
Founded by a Manhattan father of two teenaged athletes, NewYorkSportsConnection.com is the premier interactive resource for families and youth sports organizations in New York City. Users can search for information on sports leagues, teams, classes and activities, ask questions of others in the community and read pertinent content on the local sports community. The site's Weekly Sports Alert email keeps members up-to-date on upcoming deadlines for tryouts, sign-up/registration periods, clinics, camps and other sports-related events.