SportsEngine Inc., an NBC Sports Group company, and a provider of sports relationship management software, has partnered with TrueSport, a youth sports movement powered by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), to launch the second annual Coach Excellence Award recognizing coaches who put positive coaching values into action within their teams and communities.
Launching on September 9, 2020, SportsEngine and TrueSport will solicit nominations for youth sports coaches who embody the values promoted by TrueSport – sportsmanship, resiliency, character-building and life skills, and clean and healthy performance. The nomination form is available on SportsEngine and the nomination period runs from September 9, 2020 through November 9, 2020. The program also seeks to recognize those coaches who have risen to the challenges created by the shutdown of many youth sports due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The winning coach’s team will receive a surprise virtual visit from TrueSport Athlete Ambassador, Mandy Marquardt, Professional Track Cyclist for Team Novo Nordisk and the USA Cycling National Team. The winning coach will also receive the grand prize of $2,500 from SportsEngine. Two honorable mention winners will each receive $500. Nominations can include high school, middle school or club team coaches of athletes between the ages of 5 to 18.
Jose Burgos, head soccer coach at Catalyst Maria High School in Chicago was last year’s Coach Excellence Award winner. “Players are supposed to be loved so they can win,” said Burgos. “They’re not supposed to be loved because they win. The level of commitment, the connection that we have between us, goes beyond winning or losing. I am a strong believer in the idea of enjoyment behind the will to win. We should talk about what brought us onto the field in the first place.”
“The life lessons taught by coaches through sport help shape a young person’s life,” said Jody Vogelaar, SVP of marketing and content, SportsEngine. “Particularly during this challenging year, we want to recognize those coaches who have pivoted, and reinvented their programs to continue to teach and instill the values that are a vital part of the youth sports experience.”
“We are proud to partner with SportsEngine on an initiative that recognizes and rewards the impact coaches have in the youth sports community,” said Dr. Jennifer Royer, director of TrueSport and Elite Education. “We are excited to work together to honor and award coaches who take time out of their day to help change the lives of youth athletes around the country.”
