Rosemont cop wins silver medal at world games

Dale Torii already is certified in firefighting and in law enforcement as deputy superintendent of administration for the Rosemont Public Safety Department. However, now he holds another title as well: medal winner at the World Police & Fire Games in New York.

Torii won a silver medal in doubles bowling and a bronze for his combined score in 15 games. Overall, he averaged between 185-190 for the tournament.

“This was definitely a first for me,” he says.

One week before New York solemnly observed the 10th anniversary of 9/11, the city drew more than 15,000 police and firefighters to compete in 65 sports. It was the second largest sporting event in the world, behind only the Summer Olympics.

The timing was deliberate. Though the games are held every two years and at different cities around the world — the games take place in Belfast in 2013 — New York bid to host this year's version as one more way to bring attention to first responders.

“The brotherhood was unreal,” Torii says, “knowing we all worked in either law enforcement or fire service. We had this incredible bond so that no matter how you finished, all you saw were smiles and camaraderie.”

A colleague in Rosemont's department, Sgt. Sal Goodwin, urged to him to consider competing and representing the village. Goodwin has competed five times in weight lifting, and earned a gold medal, though his events were canceled this year because of Hurricane Irene.

Torii has bowled in competitive leagues for 20 years, but he concedes he never took his game seriously.

In preparation for the world games, he consulted with William Clark, who owns the pro shop at River Rand Bowl in Des Plaines.

Starting in January, they met one evening a week to refine his technique and sharpen his competitive bowling strategies. They even practiced the day before Torii left.

“Dale was a pretty good bowler when he came to me, but we tried to add more to his arsenal,” Clark says. “I tried to smooth out his delivery and make him more fluid, while adding more hooks to the ball and creating some angles going into the pocket.”

After working with Clark for nearly nine months, Torii added nearly 20 points to his average, Clark says.

“He improved not only my scores but my understanding of the game,” Torii says.” I now know how to make moves on the lanes and ball changes as the conditions present themselves.”

Torii says the world games left an impact on him that will stay long after his medals fade.

“Once we were in New York I realized that we were really representing our country,” he says. “It made me proud to wear our flag and be from the United States.”