A Diverse and Socially Inclusive America Needs to Share Its Story
About the Author: Tara D. Sonenshine serves as Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs.
Diversity is our strength, and everyone, including persons with disabilities, has important contributions to make.
That was one of the overarching messages at the 10th Special Olympics 2013 World Winter Games in South Korea this month, where athletes Tae Hemsath and Henry Meece — born in South Korea with developmental disabilities — returned to their birth country as Special Olympics athletes. Tae competed as a snowshoe racer, Henry as a snowboarder.
That same message resonated today throughout a public forum, where participants at Gallaudet University came to learn about opportunities in international exchange for persons with disabilities, and for members of the deaf community.
The audience was moved by the words and experiences of speakers, including U.S. Representative Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), a former Army helicopter pilot who lost…more »
American Athletes Promote Life Skills for Indian Youth
Media Note Office of the Spokesperson Washington, DC February 12, 2013
The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs announces Major League Baseball Hall-of-Famer Barry Larkin and Olympian Natasha Watley will travel as sports envoys to India from February 12-18. Working with Major League Baseball and USA Softball, this trip marks the Department’s first joint baseball and softball program to encourage youth participation in sports.
In New Delhi and Imphal, Larkin and Whatley will lead baseball and softball clinics for underserved youth and their coaches, as well as engage in dialogue on sports and diversity. In both cities, the sports envoys will meet with officials from the Indian Baseball and Softball Associations as well as representatives from NGOs that promote youth sports opportunities. Throughout the exchange, they will speak with local media about how sports encourage in the development of good sportsmanship, leadership, and teamwork skills. MORE
Taking the Lessons of Title IX Global—On the Court and In Life
February 6 marks the 27th National Day of Women and Girls in Sports.
Today in Esteli, Nicaragua, girls from under-served areas are on the softball diamond, fielding grounders, running out base hits, and learning how sports can improve their health and their performance in the classroom.
In Donetsk, Ukraine, girls were on the basketball court, looking for the outlet pass, grabbing rebounds, and working as a team.
About the Author: Tara Sonenshine serves as Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs.
They came off the bus in front of the Verizon Center in their white SportsUnited T-shirts. They were 12 Burmese basketball players — six girls, six boys and two coaches — participating in a sports exchange program that started last summer in Rangoon. Their excitement grew as they sat courtside to watch a real professional basketball game — and see the pro’s warming up beforehand. It grew even more when Washington Wizards Bradley Beal and Kevin Seraphin came over to greet them and pose for photographs.
Then they experienced the unique American pastime of a classic NBA basketball game — complete with cheerleaders, acrobats, chants, crowd applause, and… more »
U.S. Department of State Announces Basketball Sports Visitor Program with Youth from Burma
Media Note Office of the Spokesperson Washington, DC January 4, 2013
The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs announces that 12 Burmese youth—six boys and six girls—and two coaches will travel to the United States January 7-20. The basketball exchange program, with support from the National Basketball Association (NBA), marks the first State Department Sports Visitor program with Burma. Throughout the program, the group will learn about sports in the United States by participating in basketball clinics with their American peers and engage in educational sessions on nutrition, conflict resolution, and disability sports.
The program builds on the first-ever Sports Envoy program in Burma, that sent Charlotte Bobcats General Manager Rich Cho, former Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) player Allison Feaster, current Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach Darvin Ham, and former NBA player Marty Conlon to Burma as Sports Envoys in August 2012.
The basketball exchange participants, ages 15-17, will visit North Carolina to attend a Charlotte Bobcats game and take part in a clinic with Cho, who was born in Burma, and Bobcats players. In Washington, D.C., the group will attend a Washington Wizards game and meet team members.
SportsUnited is the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ division devoted to sports diplomacy at the U.S. Department of State. Athletes and coaches from a range of sports are chosen to conduct clinics, visit schools, and engage with youth abroad in a dialogue on the importance of education, positive health practices, and respect for diversity. The NBA has partnered with SportsUnited since 2005, helping to host Sports Visitors from 20 countries and sending nearly 60 current and former NBA and WNBA players and coaches to travel to more than 30 countries as Sports Envoys.
For more information, contact Anna Griffin of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department of State, at eca-press@state.gov.
Building U.S.-Russia Ties Through Hockey
About the Author: Michael McFaul serves as U.S. Ambassador to the Russian Federation.
Earlier this month, a group of 20 enthusiastic young American ice hockey players and four coaches came to Moscow as Youth Sports Envoys to build stronger ties between the United States and Russia, both on and off the ice. Over the past four years, both countries have sent and hosted high school swimmers, basketball, beach volleyball, and ice hockey players, and coaches in a series of eight exchanges under the U.S.-Russia Bilateral Presidential Commission.
We kept this group of ice hockey players very busy during their week-long exchange. At our reception in their honor, I loved hearing about their master classes conducted by Igor Tuzik, Vice President of the Russian Hockey Federation, and by Olympic Gold Medal winners Vladimir Myshkin and Vitaliy… more »
Girls Rule the (Sports) World: Mentoring the Next Generation of Global Women Leaders in Sports
About the Author: Ann Stock serves as Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs.
On Thursday, I met with 17 inspiring women from Australia, Brazil, China, Colombia, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kenya, Macedonia, Nigeria, the Philippines, Russia, Rwanda, Tajikistan, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Individually, they’re up-and-comers in the world of sports — as athletes, coaches, reporters, and managers. Together, they’re the inaugural class of the U.S. Department of State and espnW Global Sports Mentoring Program. The group arrived at the State Department this morning for an orientation to kick off their month-long mentorships with leading American women in sports-related fields.
For the next four weeks, these emerging leaders will work alongside their American mentors from ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut,… more »
The U.S. Department of State and espnW’s Global Sports Mentoring Program starts today! Learn more at http://youtu.be/wTy—cQVTXk
Egyptians and Americans Connect Over Soccer
About the Author: Kelli R. Davis serves as a Program Officer for SportsUnited in the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.
Recognizing the positive power of sports, a delegation of soccer coaches from Egypt took to the soccer field, to the classroom, and to local communities to engage with their American counterparts. For 10 days, these soccer coaches, who primarily coach women and girls’ soccer teams across Egypt, not only fine-tuned their soccer and coaching skills — they also got a first-hand glimpse into the lives of every-day Americans.
“We had a chance to work with people of different age groups, different social backgrounds…children with disabilities, and we also covered every single aspect of the game,” said Safia Abdel Daymen, a member of the Egyptian delegation.
Today marks 75 days until the start of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games in London. As London prepares to welcome the world for the Olympics, the British Embassy in Washington, D.C. organized a medley of sports activities or “Embassy Olympics,” in recognition last month of the “100 Days To Go” mark. On April 18, international colleagues from the diplomatic community joined to compete in the “Embassy Olympics.” SportsUnited representatives from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs along with their colleagues in the Bureau of International Information Programs and Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs were key “players” in the event.
Even the rainy weather — true to form for a British activity — did not dampen the spirits of the participants. Embassy teams enthusiastically represented countries that have previously hosted the Olympics… more »
![Wheelchair athlete, left, races along side able-bodied high school runners, April 19, 2006 in Rockville, Md. [AP File Photo]](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130213202717im_/http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2013_0212_student_athlete_m.jpg)
![Jessica Mendoza, U.S. Olympian and member of the State Department Council to Empower Women and Girls, leads clinics in Nicaragua as part of the State Department's global efforts to empower women and girls through sports, February 4, 2013. [State Department photo/ Public Domain]](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130213202717im_/http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2013_0205_women_sports_m.jpg)
![Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Tara D. Sonenshine and Ambassador Than Swe pose for a photograph with Burmese youth participating in a SportsUnited exchange program at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C., January 8, 2013. [State Department photo/ Public Domain]](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130213202717im_/http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2013_0124_sonenshine_burma_basketball_m.jpg)
![Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin meets with Russian and American exchange participants during a break from his practice with his Russian team, Moscow's Dynamo, in Russia, October 2012. [State Department photo/ Public Domain]](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130213202717im_/http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_1023_russia_hockey_m.jpg)
![Egyptian soccer coach poses with youth during SportsUnited exchange program in Washington, D.C., 2012. [State Department photo/ Public Domain]](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130213202717im_/http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0613_soccer_youth__m.jpg)
![U.S. Department of State employees pose for a photograph after participating in Embassy Olympics at Reeves Field American University in Washington, D.C., on April 18, 2012, to mark 100 days until the start of the London Olympics. [Photography copyright Tony Powell/ British Embassy]](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20130213202717im_/http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0513_team_usa_m.jpg)
