For more information, contact:
The St. Louis Sports Commission
314-992-0687
sports@stlouissports.org

AREA'S TOP TRACK & FIELD COACHES AND ATHLETES FEATURED AT SPORTS FOR KIDS COACHES CLINIC FEB. 26

ST. LOUIS — Feb. 7, 2005 — Some of the region's best track & field coaches and athletes, including three 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials qualifiers, will be among the guest instructors at the St. Louis Sports Commission's Sports for Kids Track & Field coaches clinic on Saturday, Feb. 26 at Normandy Senior High School.

The free Coach it Right! instructional clinic takes place from 8 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. in the Viking Hall Gymnasium at the corner of Lucas & Hunt and St. Charles Rock Road. It is open to youth and high school coaches, parents, and administrators. Participants will receive expert instruction on sportsmanship, proper motivation of youth athletes, hurdles/sprinting, throwing events, distance running, training, and nutrition. The clinic also features a one-of-a-kind “jump school,” a 90-minute session dedicated to teaching coaches proper techniques for jumping and throwing events.

Instructors include: Lester Smith, LeVar Anderson, and Levar Miller, participants in the 2004 U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials in Sacramento, Calif.; Nicole Bonner and Derek McDaniel, all-American athletes from St. Louis Community College at Florissant Valley; Norris Stevenson, St. Louis Community College at Florissant Valley head coach; and Denise McField, an assistant coach at Normandy high school and the master's indoor 400-meter world record holder.

To register, call 314-992-0689 or visit www.stlsports.org/kids.

Under the banner of Coach it Right!, Sports for Kids organizes free coaching clinics that educate and motivate volunteer youth coaches in various sports. The clinics emphasize the value of sportsmanship and develop coaching skills to help participants become better coaches, and in turn, lead to more positive experiences for area children on the playing field. The mission of Sports for Kids is to help young people from St. Louis live healthier, happier and more productive lives through sports.

Last year, more than 600 coaches attended free Coach it Right! clinics. With each coach working with approximately 20 kids, the initiative had a positive impact on over 12,000 young people in St. Louis. In addition, Sports for Kids hosted a Sports Career Day for more than 200 students in the Fort Zumwalt School District and an NCAA Youth Education through Sports (YES) clinic for 350 youth wrestlers at Savvis Center.