San Antonio Sports Foundation

Fall! Football! Fun with volleyball! And…the first-ever Foundation Champions Luncheon. Now that is a FULL plate!

Don’t miss the first ever Champions Luncheon on Friday, September 17 at the Hyatt Regency San Antonio. Texas Tech Basketball Coach Bob Knight will be our featured speaker, and we promise entertainment plus!

It’s first come, first served and you can still get a ticket to this Sports Foundation members-only event. Not a member of the Sports Foundation yet? Your ticket includes a membership in the Sports Foundation --- entertainment, plus a lasting benefit! You may click here for details and order your tickets or tables online now. Plus, guests can participate in an once-in-a-lifetime raffle!

“Top” Sports Foundation sponsors will be treated with a pre-lunch private reception with Coach Knight. Attendees will receive their own autographed edition of Coach Knight’s latest book.

More reasons to support the Sports Foundation and our youth initiatives…building a city of Champions!

The Sports Foundation is happy to welcome home our local Olympians, three of whom brought back the best kind of souvenir from Athens – Olympic medals!

One of brightest stars to shine at the Olympics was the San Antonio Silver Stars’ Shannon Jackson who won a women’s basketball gold medal with Team USA. Two of the San Antonio Spurs will be reunited in San Antonio after challenging each other in Athens. Manu Ginobilli earned the men’s basketball gold medal with his native Argentina and Tim Duncan brought home the bronze with Team USA.

San Antonio teacher and marathoner Liza Hunter-Galvan proudly represented her native New Zealand on the original, incredibly difficult Olympic marathon route. Vakhtang Iagorashvili and Mary Beth Larsen-Iagorashvili were the first married couple to ever compete in the modern pentathlon. They represented USA Pentathlon, which is headquartered in San Antonio.

The Olympics may be over, but the Paralympic competition does not finish until late September. San Antonio's Larry Quintero will compete in Paralympic tennis. He is currently ranked 18th in the world.

Kids & Harleys Is Ready To Ride!

The tenth annual For the Love of Kids & Harleys gala is next Wednesday, September 8, at Cowboys Dancehall (formerly Far West Rodeo). George Strait will join the founders as a guest auctioneer for the live auction which features three Harley Hog motorcycles. The event also will showcase the largest silent auction to date with fabulous packages both in and outside of San Antonio. The auction will feature beautiful home furnishings, tickets to Spurs and SBC Cotton Bowl games, luxurious stays at various resorts and lots of opportunities to eat your way around San Antonio!

Please join us at 7 p.m. at Cowboys and do some early Christmas shopping! Proceeds benefit the Sports Foundation’s Dreams for Youth program, Any Baby Can, Respite Care of San Antonio, Easter Seals and Ronald McDonald House.

For the second year, the beautiful Dominion Country Club will host the San Antonio Sports Foundation Golf Classic. This year’s event takes place Monday, November 15 with an 8 a.m. shotgun start.

Reserve your foursome today as a $2500 Silver sponsor (two teams) or $1000 Bronze (one team) sponsor. Individual player slots are available for $300. Proceeds benefit the Sports Foundation and its Dreams for Youth program. Book your team today by contacting Elena Stout at estout@sanantoniosports.org or 210-820-2127.

The San Antonio Sports Foundation sponsored the first annual James Kuhn Open at Palo Alto College last weekend. Fencers from as far as Dallas and Monterrey, Mexico participated. The tournament had close to 90 registrations, with the largest coming in the mixed epee (32) and mixed foil (23) competitions.

In mixed epee, Robert Reed from All Texas Athletic Center (ATAC), the 2003 Division-1 Summer National Men’s Epee Champion, defeated Kelley Hurley (Team Hurley), the 2004 Women’s Cadet Epee Summer National Champion, for the gold medal. Mark Kubik (SASF), 2004 Cadet National Team member, defeated his younger brother Steve Kubik (SASF) for the gold medal in mixed foil.

James Kuhn, a prominent New York businessman and fencing enthusiast who donated money to the Dreams for Youth fencing program, was unable to attend the tournament named for him, but sent his regards to all the organizers, volunteers, and competitors.

According to José Sanchez, Dreams for Youth head coach and tournament organizer, the event ran well thanks to the volunteers’ efforts. He singled out Inez Walker, Debra Doolittle, and Lynn Mendoza who operated the check-in committee and whose children served as time keepers. USFA South Texas Division Vice-Chair Cristina Howell, parent of CODP fencer Kristin Howell, served as divisional representative and as part of the bout committee.

José noted that the speed and efficiency in tournament operation, and a relaxed and fun environment set by the bout committee and referees, made the event a hit with competitors. Both volunteers and competitors look forward to participating in the 2005 SASF- James Kuhn Open.

Competitive diving isn’t what most people would classify as a great stress reliever, but former Community Olympic Development Program (CODP) diver John Lynch does. He says it gets his mind off things, is a great way to stay in shape, a lot of fun, and “a way to meet people you wouldn’t ordinarily hang out with.” This talented athlete’s love of diving led to a scholarship at the University of Wyoming, where the sophomore says he keeps on improving due to his coach, Russ Dekker. But John credits CODP diving coach Tommy Law with getting him where he is today.

Originally passionate about soccer, but burned out on the sport, John attended Health Careers High School that fortuitously didn’t have a soccer team. He decided to give diving a try and took to it like a fish to water. Tommy, who was John’s high school coach, persuaded him to try out for club diving. “He was a quick learner,” says Tommy, adding that by joining the team, John had more access to the trampoline (a favorite for practicing flips) and bonded with the other divers. Tommy points out that John is a natural leader and ended up doing some coaching by his senior year. He returned to San Antonio and helped coach again this summer.

Tommy believes that coach Russ Dekker and John Lynch are the perfect match. Dekker is a former show diver and John likes to perform very rare, difficult show dives. John’s goal is to win an NCAA diving championship and after college, to coach many NCAA and Olympic champions.

The United States fencing team had its most successful Olympic games in decades and one of the Sports Foundation’s own was at the helm! Sports Foundation board member and founder of Dreams for Youth, Stacey Johnson, is president of U.S. Fencing. Under her leadership, American women won their first ever-Olympic fencing medals. Mariel Zagunis won gold in the women's sabre competition, the first gold for an American fencer since 1904. Sada Johnson won bronze in the same event.

Team USA also did well in other events. The men's foil team finished fourth, the best finish for an American men's foil team since 1956. The men's sabre team finished in fourth place. Soren Thompson finished 7th in men's epee, the best finish by an American in that event since 1956. And the men's epee team finished 6th, the highest finish in that event since 1956.

"These Games were the most historic in U.S. Fencing's history," says Johnson, who was on the 1980 USA Olympic fencing squad. “Not only did the newest discipline on the Olympic program, women's saber, bring us two medals, but it also brought a first for U.S. Fencing ever --winning the gold medal. All the blood, sweat and tears that were shed to fight in the international federation's arena and bring women's saber on to the Olympic program over these past four years was well worth it as is evidenced with the great results achieved. I have felt the strong support from SASF during my four-year term as president of the U.S. Fencing Association. I want to thank everyone here who supports me and in turn helped to bring home the gold for U.S. Fencing."

Home from Athens!

Sports Foundation staffers Jenny Carnes and Elena Stout have returned from their Olympic stints in Athens. Jenny worked with the U.S. Olympic Committee’s media operations office, and Elena assisted the international federation of Pentathlon with hospitality duties. Each brought back great stories, terrific photos and memories to last a lifetime.

In their own words…

Jenny Carnes
Executive Director,
San Antonio Local Organizing Committee for the 2005 NCAA Women’s Volleyball Championship

“Being a part of an Olympic Games in its birthplace was a dream come true for me…I was fortunate to grab what was probably the last seat in the stadium for the gold medal softball game, right on the third base line. I looked over and to the right of me sat the parents and husband of one of the greatest players in the history of American softball, Lisa Fernandez. For a few magical hours, I got to watch a family’s pride and excitement swell with each pitch she threw to lead her team on an undefeated journey to gold. I’ll never forget the medal ceremony and hearing our national anthem.

A few days later, I was fighting for position in the mix zone (where media are able to interact with athletes following competition) of the rowing venue, tape recorder in hand following the end of an American forty-year, gold medal drought in Men’s Eight. There were two barricades between us and the rowers were walking up from the dock. Suddenly, I was bumped by a large man who is fighting his way through the first barricade and just in front of him on the other side, his son is doing the same through the second. They met in the middle in an embrace of tears and happiness. It was one of the most incredible moments I’ve ever witnessed, and needless to say, the reporters fighting for quotes along side of me figured out quickly I was not one of them as I stood there in tears myself watching this unfold.”

Elena Stout
Assistant Executive Director
Marketing & Promotions

“It is hard to believe that when I was first given the opportunity to go to the Olympics, I considered not going. I can’t imagine the regret that I would have felt. I went to Opening Ceremonies, I ate lunch at the athlete’s village and I went to every event I could get to. It was the most amazing experience, and I enjoyed every minute.

I was most surprised that the seating I had was in the same section as the athletes’ seating. I realized this the first day of track and field when Maurice Greene sat beside me to watch the first rounds of the women’s 100m. I was even more shocked when I joined a conversation before the final swimming events with none other than Mark Spitz. It was an honor to meet him and hear of his Olympic experience and his excitement for Michael Phelps first hand.”

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