LONDON - Former Manhattan College women's basketball star Rosalee Mason '04 participated in the 2012 Olympic Torch Relay on Sunday. The Jaspers' all-time leading rebounder, Mason carried the flame through the London Borough of Bexley.
Mason grabbed 1,217 rebounds during her Manhattan career, which is still the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) record. A three-time First Team All-MAAC selection, Mason is also second on the Jaspers' all-time scoring list with 1,875 career points. In 2002-03, she led the Jaspers to the first MAAC regular season title in program history. That squad went on to win the MAAC Tournament and make Manhattan's most recent appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
After graduating from Manhattan, Mason became a key member of the British National Team, which was founded in 2005 (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland all had separate national teams previously). She won a bronze medal with England at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne.
Mason was selected as a torchbearer because of her contributions to British basketball and for being an inspirational role model. She coaches at basketball camps every summer and regularly speaks at community events. In addition, she has gotten involved with the girls basketball team from the Wandsworth Borough, where she's from, helping it prepare for the annual London Youth Games.
The Olympic flame was lit in Athens, Greece, and began its 70-day journey across Great Britain on May 18. More than 8,000 torchbearers will participate in the Torch Relay, which runs through more than 1,000 cities, towns and villages throughout the United Kingdom. The relay culminates with the lighting of the Olympic Cauldron at the conclusion of Friday night's Opening Ceremony.
