Olden Polynice, Haitian athlet

Olden Polynice was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti and did his high school education in All Hallows High School in the Bronx. His passionate for the basketball game saw him participate in college basketball at the University of Virginia.

After college, Polynice played for Hamby Riminini of Serie A in 1986-87. In 1987 Chicago bulls selected him for the team as the 8th overall in the years' NBA draft. He was later traded with Scottie Pippen to the Seattle SuperSonics.

Los Angeles Clippers secured him and later sold him to Detroit Pistons in the year 1992. Two years later he was traded to Sacramento Kings for Pete Chilcutt.

In his NBA career, Olden Polynice played for 15 seasons as a distinguished hardnosed rebounder. He signed for teams which were in need of an interior player or a rebounder. He was one of the most successful player in offensive rebounds.

He managed an average of 23.5 minutes, 7.8 points and 6.7 rebounds per game in all his 15 seasons NBA career. His retirement came in 2004 while he was playing for the Clippers. His final team to serve was Los Angeles Aftershock of the ABA in the 2005-05 season.

Olden Polynice has worked as a basketball coach since his retirement. Polynice has trained the Long Beach Breakers of the ABA's. He has also worked as a color commentator for the WNBA's Sacramento Monarchs in 1997.

He has also made another mark in his life; In 1993, Polynice lead a hunger strike that was protesting the treatment of H.I.V positive Haitian refugees who were held in Guantanamo Bay. He became the first U.S athlete to ever participate in a hunger strike.

Olden Polynice now resides in Los Angeles. He is operating the Olden Polynice Hoop Foundation. He is an activist for Haiti and has been mobilizing Haitian players in the U.S to have a sense of responsibility for their motherland. He calls himself "an activist for Haiti until the day I die.... whether it's chic or not." I spoke with him about the current post-earthquake calamity.

Speaking in an interview after the Haitian earthquake, Polynice said, "That's my home. I've always done stuff for Haiti. I've always been an activist and I continue to be one. I want everyone to know: this earthquake is not a Haiti problem. It's a world problem. Anything that affects Haiti, affects the world and if you think that's not true, then you are sadly mistaken."

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