Albert Apuzzi and Dori Ten

Coney Island handball champions Albert Apuzzi and Dori Ten on the mecca of handball

Interviewer:
Interviewee:
Albert Apuzzi and Dori Ten
Interview Date:
May 14, 2016

Languages

Husband and wife Albert Apuzzi and Dori Ten are one-wall handball champions who have long played at Coney Island's famed Seaside Courts, known as the mecca of handball. Apuzzi tells how he started playing handball in kindergarten when the game was also called Ace-King-Queen, depending on where you lived in Brooklyn. He has won seven consecutive national doubles championships, making him a United States Handball Association record holder. He has a total of 20 national titles and has been in 32 national finals, Ten says she's "a Coney Island girl" who grew up on West 16th Street and Neptune Avenue. The handball courts on West 5th Street were her go-to place for playing paddleball and taking a dip in the ocean to cool off. She credits Apuzzi, whom she met in 1987, with introducing her to handball and making her a national champion several times over.

This interview was recorded on It's My Estuary Day, an annual day of service, learning and celebration featuring over 40 partner organizations at Coney Island Creek in Kaiser Park.