2014 Futures Elite Academy Field Hockey Selections Announced

Sponsored by: Field Hockey Coaching DVD's from Sports Nation Video

This summer, the crème de la crème of high school athletes competed in the National Futures Championship, Futures Elite Championship, and AAU Junior Olympics. From these three events, the top competitors across U14, U16, and U19 age groups have been selected to train at the 2014 Futures Elite Academies. These athletes have been identified as possessing the skills, talent, and athletic prowess to successfully continue through the next stages in USA Field Hockey’s Olympic Development Pipeline. The Academies exist to provide additional training and competition opportunities for these athletes distinguished with the potential to one day represent Team USA.

“Within the Olympic movement our mechanism to identify the sport’s top athletes and move those competitors to the next level is well renowned,” explained USA Field Hockey’s Executive Director, Steve Locke. “This program is the envy of the Olympic family and has proven over the years to showcase athletes and improve their technical skills for top collegiate performance and potential Olympic team selection.”

The Futures Elite Academy Program sits atop the Olympic Development Pipeline along with the U17, U19, and U21 Junior National Team Squads. All Futures Elite Academy athletes must have participated in the Futures Program in order to continue up the Olympic Pipeline. Futures Elite Academy selectees participate in a Level I training site comprised of athletes who attended the prior year’s NFC, FEC, and AAU Junior Olympics within their region until the Futures Elite Academies begin in March, April, or May. Futures Elite Academy athletes have the unique opportunity to hone their hockey skills at an elite level under the highest caliber of coaches and develop their game amongst the country’s most talented high school aged players. 

 

Cheerleading Coaching and Conditioning

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Whether you are trying to get in shape for cheerleading tryouts or working on stepping up your fitness routine for your upcoming season, this complete guide includes everything you need to achieve your goals!

Get your free copy now, and easily save, print and share this guide with your cheer community! The guide is free; we’ll just ask that you share this cheer resource by sending a tweet about it or posting it to Facebook.

Chapter Previews:

Fitness Plan
The first step in developing a fitness plan is to actually make a plan! Your plan should be beyond what you already do, or will do, for cheerleading – you’ll want to make your own fitness goals and stick to them. This will help keep you on track during summer breaks and holidays. Learn how to develop a plan, create a program and stay motivated in this comprehensive chapter that includes tips for the perfect playlist!

Stretches
Stretching is an absolute in cheerleading! Access over 15 stretches that focus on the most important target areas for cheerleaders: arms, back and legs. You’ll also learn about the training benefits of a disciplined stretching regime.

Core Training
Having a rock solid core helps with lifting and throwing, and prevents back injuries that could get you stretch_train_sketchbenched during the cheerleading season or haunt you later in life. Learn how to do a number of core exercises that will target train your back, abdomen and hips!

Leg Training

Cheerleaders need to target their legs during conditioning so they are strong enough for intense stunting. Building up the strength in your legs and hips will become one of your main lifelines for basing and flying, and will help give you maximum control. This chapter helps you focus on your calves, thighs and gluteus with solid conditioning exercises that would fit into any fitness program!

Arm Training
Arm strength is crucial to all positions on a cheerleading squad! Tossing, lifting, twisting and catching other girls in the air is not for the faint or weak, not to mention that the foundation of cheerleading is arm motions! From the triceps to the wrists, this chapter will help cheerleaders incorporate a strengthening routine that will make them a lean, mean, lifting machine. Use these anywhere arm exercises to help you strength train and condition.

 

World Cup stadium may be used for prisoner processing

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RIO DE JANEIRO -- A World Cup stadium being built in the isolated Brazilian state of Amazonas may not become a white elephant after all.

At least one judge in the area has come up with a post-World Cup use: a prisoner processing center.

Brazil is readying 12 stadiums for next year's World Cup, and several -- including the new stadium in Manaus -- will be little used after the tournament.

FIFA and Brazilian officials were the subject of widespread protests three months ago during the Confederations Cup, a warm-up for the World Cup.

Millions took to the streets to protest spending billions on sports events in a country with poor public services, high taxes and stark social inequality.

Brazil is spending an estimated $3.5 billion on stadiums for the World Cup, part of a total of $13.3 billion for related infrastructure needed to host soccer's biggest event.

Spending on the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics will be similar.

Alvaro Corado, spokesman for the Amazonas state court system, told The Associated Press Tuesday that Judge Sabino Marques had proposed a novel idea.

"He would, perhaps, suggest to the government of the state of Amazonas that the stadium be used as a processing center for prisoners after the World Cup," Corado said, quoting Marques.

Marques is also the president of a group that monitors the prison system in the state.

The new 44,000-seat stadium in Manaus, being built at a cost of $275 million, will host only four World Cup matches. The city of 2.3 million has no team in Brazil's first or second division, and little soccer tradition.

The potential for building white elephants is similar for three other new stadiums: in the capital Brasilia, in Cuiaba in the southwest, and in Natal in the northeast.

FIFA requires only eight stadiums for the World Cup, but Brazil decided to have 12 -- under pressure from politicians who used the construction projects to provide jobs and political loyalty.

Brazilian Sports Minister Aldo Rebelo has defended the legacy of the stadiums as "centers for sports and non-sports events" and has suggested they would be places for conventions, shows and fairs.

Other Brazilians officials have said cities will need to be creative to find uses for the stadiums.

Jose Maria Marin, the president of the Brazilian Football Federation, said earlier this year that finding uses for some stadiums after the World Cup will "all depend on the creativity, the imagination of the owners and the operators of these stadiums. It will depend on the imagination of each leader."


Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press 

500 field hockey wins and counting

Sponsored by: Field Hockey DVD's from Sports Nation Video

Chrissy Lewis Summers, head coach at the Potomac School in Mclean, Va. and owner of Beyond Sticks, writes from a unique perspective of losing to Coach Marsha Way and giving Way her 500th win. 

As the clock wound down on a perfect Fall day and the scoreboard loudly declared "Home: 1 Guest: 2" I knew we were about to join the ranks of literally hundreds of other field hockey teams who’ve come up short. Only one week earlier, our guests, St. Stephen's & St. Agnes School in Alexandria, Va., won their 500th game at home under the helm of head Coach Marsha Way. Since arriving at St. Agnes School (the school merged with St. Stephens School in 1991) in the fall of 1979, she has never missed a season as the varsity coach, even during her tenure as athletic director. Over 35 years, she has amassed an incredible 21 conference championships, 20 conference tournament championships, four Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association championships, and 12 undefeated seasons. 

"I was pleased it happened on our home turf. It is just surreal,” remarks Coach Way of the monumental win. Despite achieving a milestone few reach in any level of sport, she is humbled less by the number but by those around her. "I don't want the attention on myself. This happened because of every kid I've ever coached and every assistant coach I've ever had. We did it as a team." 

When comparing the game in her early coaching days to now, she is continually amazed at how the sport has evolved. “The kids are just more skilled. The game is much faster and the kids are faster. They can do more with their sticks. It’s great to watch.” Unlike some coaches, as the game evolved, so did Marsha and her staff.

Is there a secret to her success? According to Marsha, her “kids are simply hard workers”. Nonetheless, from what this coach can see, Marsha takes that work ethic, builds upon it, and instills a discipline in them that has created over 3 decades of consistently top level play. When asked to sum up her coaching mantra, it is beautifully simple and effective: “Work hard, play smart, and play as one team.” Her team doesn't just say it; they live it.

Although we plan on working to make sure their 501st win against our squad is her final win on our turf, there is no doubt we will not be the last team to see her players churn out another win for the record books. All under the listing “Head Coach: Marsha Way.”

Congratulations to a fellow coach on being a role model, on making those you play better, on honoring the game we all love, and finally, on scoring more than the other team for 35 years and counting.

 

Group to Create Sport of Stunt

Cheerleading News Sponsored by: Cheerleading DVD's from Sports Nation Video

A second organization has announced plans to create a sport out of competitive cheerleading in an effort to get competitions recognized by the N.C.A.A. A week after USA Gymnastics announced it would oversee meets among the six colleges that have had varsity competitive cheer teams, a competing plan was introduced by USA Cheer.

The governing body said it was teaming with 15 colleges to create the sport of stunt. Events approved by USA Gymnastics will be called team acrobatics and tumbling. Both efforts stem from a recent federal court ruling that found competitive cheerleading was not established enough to meet the federal gender equity requirements of a Title IX sport.

MLS penalizes Chivas USA's De Luna and Montreal

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NEW YORK -- Chivas USA defender Mario De Luna has been fined for violent conduct in the team's Sept. 21 game against Houston.

Major League Soccer said Wednesday that De Luna's action against Dynamo midfielder Brad Davis in the 44th minute didn't warrant a suspension.

In another case, the league said that both the Montreal Impact and Vancouver Whitecaps violated the mass confrontation policy in the 38th minute of their Sept. 20 game.

The Impact was fined $10,000 and coach Marco Schallibaum was hit with a $2,000 penalty because it was the club's third infraction. Vancouver received an official warning.


Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press 

US Women sweep past Mexico in Field Hockey

Sponsored by: Field Hockey Instruction DVD's from Sports Nation Video

MENDOZA, Argentina – September 21, 2013 – Under brisk weather conditions and a flurry of snow, the U.S. Women kicked-off the Pan American Cup this afternoon in notable fashion. The squad created multiple scoring opportunities throughout the match, which resulted in goals from five different U.S. athletes. Team USA was able to continue their first-half lead momentum against Mexico to finish the game 6-0.

“The players were very eager to get going today, so it was nice to win in the first game of the tournament,” said U.S. Women’s Head Coach, Craig Parnham.“It is also pleasing that there have been multiple goal scorers. It was a great team effort today.”

The passing sequences throughout the first half created multiple circle entries, which led Team USA to capitalize on three quick corners. The U.S. converted on the third and fourth penalty corners as Katelyn Falgowski (Landenber, Pa.) and Jamie Montgomery (Lewisburg, Pa.) each found the back of the cage. Katie O’Donnell (Blue Bell, Pa.) closed out the first half of the match by scoring the third goal off a deflected ball in the circle.

“It was great to get a game under our belts,” said U.S Women’s Captain, Lauren Crandall. “Our main focus today was making sure we connected through each of our lines and to start the tournament off on the right foot.”

As the umpire blew the whistle and motioned the start of the second half, Team USA remained relentless. Katie Reinprecht (Perkasie, Pa.) opened the door of scoring by deflecting a shot by Rachel Dawson (Berlin, N.J.). Reinprecht answered again finishing off a beautiful cross ball into the circle by Montgomery. Paige Selenski (Shavertown, Pa.) scored the final goal of the match on diving effort in front of the cage to solidify the win.

“It is always a team effort,” said Crandall. “The individual skills are important but collectively as a team it takes hard work from everyone to succeed and that is exactly what happened here today.”

“There is still some work to do,” Parnham said. "We were able to create multiple opportunities but we need to be able to convert on more of our chances in the next few games.

Team USA will take the pitch tomorrow, September 22 at 12:30 p.m. ET against Chile and will end pool play against Uruguay on Tuesday, September 24, 3 p.m. ET. The semi-finals are scheduled for Thursday, September 26 and the medal matches on Saturday, September 28.

To support Team USA as they embark on their Pan Am Cup journey in Mendoza, Argentina, follow our Twitter handle @USAFieldHockey for the latest news and live updates. Go USA!