News from the Springs
by Steve Pastorino / August 18, 2010
Colorado Springs -- USATH board member Jeff Utz and I presented the 2011-2016 High Performance Plan in person today to nearly two dozen members of US Olympic Committee senior leadership in the USOC's sparkling new downtown headquarters.
It's always an honor to sit before this group which includes many Olympians, and rightfully deserves credit for our many Olympic successes for decades. We also welcomed two handball Olympians as guests for the presentations (Greg Morava and Kathy Rex). We're glad we could welcome them in recognition of their work to build up women's handball and the Futures program.
It's always an honor to sit before this group which includes many Olympians, and rightfully deserves credit for our many Olympic successes for decades. We also welcomed two handball Olympians as guests for the presentations (Greg Morava and Kathy Rex). We're glad we could welcome them in recognition of their work to build up women's handball and the Futures program.
Our presentation revisited our fundamental premises established in 2008: 1) the need to get 100,000 kids in America playing handball by 2016; and 2) the importance of training our top athletes in Europe.
We are making a dent in the 100,000 figure, but still have a long way to go. On the European athlete side, however, we're now tracking 30 American athletes playing in Iceland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Germany and Poland; plus Egypt and Tunisia.
New additions include Gabe Goodreau, the MVG from 2010 Nationals who is headed to Germany; and Nicole Andersen, who lives in Sweden but will make her debut before USA coaches next week in Germany. Additionally, tomorrow, we hope to finalize a list of as many as six American women who will move to Bjerringbro, Denmark for at least the fall semester to study and play in one of the cradles of women's handball.
New additions include Gabe Goodreau, the MVG from 2010 Nationals who is headed to Germany; and Nicole Andersen, who lives in Sweden but will make her debut before USA coaches next week in Germany. Additionally, tomorrow, we hope to finalize a list of as many as six American women who will move to Bjerringbro, Denmark for at least the fall semester to study and play in one of the cradles of women's handball.
Having had dinner with two of those Denmark-bound athletes tonight, it's an important reminder of the dreams and opportunities that USA Team Handball represent for our young athletes. I'll remember as much from our 90-minute dinner with them as I will from the four hours at USOC earlier today. Thank you, Athletes, for your dedication!
We should learn by mid-October if the USOC continues to believe in our vision, management and programming. They demonstrated their support last year with a substantial improvement in funding - and we hope they see our work in the same positive light this time around.
