News from the San Jose Sports Authority
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The San Jose Sports Authority is a non-profit organization whose mission is to increase the City of San Jose’s economic development, visibility and civic pride through sports.
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2019 Year in Review from Executive Director, John Poch
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2019
… What a year is it was for the San Jose Sports Authority and our terrific partners as we hosted and supported 31 events. These events brought an estimated $60 million in economic impact to our region and covered 32 event days.
We are very proud to have broadened the types of events being held in San Jose and the South Bay and to have supported several of the biggest events in the sporting industry, including the College Football Playoff National Championship, the National Hockey League All-Star Game, the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, and concluding the year with the NCAA Women’s College Cup.
In addition to these mega-events, we also were partners and supporters of America’s premier cycling event in the Amgen Tour of California, the Women’s Tennis Associations Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic – the longest continuous women’s professional tennis tournament. We supported Avaya Stadium and the San Jose Earthquakes with the Premier Lacrosse League and La Liga’s FC Villadolid’s match versus the Quakes and the always popular Rock-n-Roll Racing Series with their Health Expo, 5K, 10K and Half-Marathon road races in Downtown San Jose.
By our estimates, more than 287,000 total patrons either attended or participated in our supported events. Many of these events either raised funds for or donated a portion of their proceeds to local charities. These events included the College Football Playoff Foundation’s Extra Yard for Teachers benefiting thousands of school children, our local school districts and teachers. The NHL & the Sharks Foundations provided a gift of $1M gift to build the Outdoor Roller Hockey Rink at Roosevelt Park for the City of San Jose’s Parks, Recreation & Neighborhood Services. The 25
th
annual San Jose Sports Hall of Fame provided financial support to the Northern California Special Olympics.
Events spanned throughout the year, once again proving that San Jose’s ability to host sporting events is not seasonal, but on a year-around basis, showing why San Jose is the premier sports destination on the West Coast.
In addition we also hosted our two signature community events; the REACH Youth Scholarship Breakfast and the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame. These two events deliver our mission in program form.
We were also honored to have the NHL All-Star Game selected as a finalist for the Sporting Event of the Year by the Sports Business Journal. Truly deserving recognition from the industry leading publication on our planning, implementation and execution of sporting events at the highest level.
None of these events would be possible without the support of the many, many great partners of the San Jose Sports Authority. Thank you to all of those that made 2019 such a SPECTACULAR year to enable us to deliver on our mission is to increase the City of San Jose’s economic development, visibility and civic pride through sports.
We are looking forward to a busy and prosperous 2020!
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Bay Area Figure Skaters Win Big at U.S. Championships
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GREENSBORO, N.C.
— At the 2020 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Bay Area's
Alysa Liu
put on a spectacular skating performance becoming the youngest two-time U.S. women’s skating champion at the age of 14. The Bay Area native, Liu unleashed a repertoire of jumps hitting two triple axels among eight triples overall and attempted the only quad of the event, a lutz she under-rotated. Her 160.12 points by far exceeded the rest of the field and lifted her to 235.52, nearly 15 points ahead of the competition.
She became the first woman to attempt a quadruple jump in the history of U.S. Nationals Friday with her quad lutz 40 seconds into her four-minute long program. Even though it was under-rotated, it was a breathtaking achievement — and an important signal that she can play ball with the seemingly endless stream of tiny jumpers Russia keeps producing. When it was over and the crowd was again on its feet and she became the first woman to repeat as U.S. champion since Ashley Wagner in 2013.
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Karen Chen
(Fremont, CA) recaptured some of the form that won her the 2017 U.S. title. The Cornell freshman covered the ice with speed and assurance, and her opening triple Lutz was one of the finest in the event. Earning 123.24 points, she rose from fifth after the short program to place fourth overall. Chen earned a spot on the 2020 Four Continents Figure Skating Championships team from her impressive performance.
On the men’s side,
Nathan Chen
(Palo Alto, CA), who said he competed on one week of full training after a flu bout, was his usual standout self, becoming the first man to win four straight national titles since Bay Area figure skating legend,
Brian Boitano
(Mountain View, CA) in 1988. The Yale freshman won all of his national titles by at least 37 points. No other skater, pair or dance couple has won by more than 33 points since the Code of Points was instituted in 2006.
Vincent Zhou
(Palo Alto, CA), the world bronze medalist, finished fourth with one quad in his free skate. Zhou had minor jump landing errors, competing after not training properly for the entire autumn while a freshman at Brown. He moved to Toronto in late December, changed coaches and resumed training a month before nationals. Despite finishing 4th, Zhou earned 1 of the 3 spots on the World Championships by a U.S. Figure Skating committee. He will compete in March at the 2020 World Figure Skating Championships in Montreal, Canada.
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2021 U.S. Figure Skating Championships Returns to San Jose
San Jose, CA
—
U.S. Figure Skating announced the selection of San Jose, California, as the host city for the 2021 TOYOTA U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Jan. 11-17, 2021. Competition and practice will be held at
SAP Center at San Jose
and
Solar4America Ice at San Jose
. The 2021 U.S. Championships will return to San Jose for the fourth time (1996, 2012 and 2018), and the first since 2018. The annual event, held since 1914, is the nation’s most prestigious figure skating event, with past champions including
Michelle Kwan
,
Kristi Yamaguchi
,
Brian Boitano
and
Scott Hamilton
. Champions will be crowned in ladies, men’s, pairs and ice dance at the championship and junior levels.
“We are thrilled to host the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, one of the country’s most high-profile sporting events, in San Jose, celebrating the centennial of U.S. Figure Skating” added John Poch, Executive Director of the San Jose Sports Authority. “With leadership from the Sports Authority, SAP Center at San Jose, and the continued support of our key community partners, including the City and its Office of Economic Development and Team San Jose of the San Jose Convention & Visitors Bureau, we are eager to showcase our world-class city as the Championships return to SAP Center."
The event will serve as a kickoff to U.S. Figure Skating’s 100-year anniversary celebration. Tickets to the 2021 U.S. Championships are on sale now. For to purchase tickets and for more information visit
SkateSanJose2021.com
.
Alysa Liu wants YOU to be there in San Jose:
Watch Video
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Pat Hurst selected as U.S. captain for 2021 Solheim Cup
Pat Hurst
(San Leandro, CA), San Jose State assistant women's golf coach was selected captain of the U.S. team for the 2021 Solheim Cup on Thursday.The 50-year-old Hurst was an assistant to
Juli Inkster
(Santa Cruz, CA) for the matches against Europe in 2015, 2017 and 2019, and played in the competition five times during a 20-year career on the LPGA Tour. Both Hurst (Class of 2018) and Inkster (Class of 2019) are members of the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame Class. Hurst said Inkster was the first person she called after being told she was captain by LPGA Tour commissioner Mike Whan.
“We’re two different people but we’re also great friends who love and respect each other,” Hurst said. "I want to bring the best of what Juli brought and do it with my own personality. I think I’ve built a lot of trust with the players.”
The 2021 match will be held at the Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio, where the Americans will look to regain the cup from Europe after losing at Gleneagles, Scotland, in September.
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The Tradition Continues with 24th Annual REACH Youth Scholarship
The REACH Youth Scholarship Program is an annual community event that has provided college funds to high school students over the past 24 years who have overcome adversity to excel in academics and sports. Each year, Santa Clara County high school seniors are nominated for the program, which stands for Recognizing Excellence, Adversity, Courage and Hard Work.
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The REACH Breakfast Ceremony features honorary chairs, Hall of Fame San Francisco 49er Safety, Ronnie Lott and two time World Cup and Olympic Gold Medalist, Brandi Chastain. Lott and Chastain will be present at the awards breakfast on April 24th at the Marriott in Downtown San Jose. The San Jose Sports Authority is now accepting REACH Youth Scholarship nominations for this year’s program. Nominees must:
- Be high school seniors and Santa Clara County resident or student,
- Maintain a 2.5 GPA,
- Participate in at least one sanctioned high school athletic activity,
- Demonstrate community involvement,
- Show the ability to overcome adversity or obstacles to reach his or her goals.
For consideration, each nominee is required to write an essay of one to three pages based on his or her experiences. The essay should focus on the obstacles they have overcome and how sports have helped them achieve their goals. Essays will be judged on content. To request a
REACH application packet
contact, Carrie at
carrie@sjsa.org
.
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Renee Baumgartner, Athletic Director at Santa Clara University
Renee Baumgartner, a dynamic intercollegiate athletics administrator, as well as former college head coach and student-athlete, is in her fifth season as Santa Clara's director of athletics.
In overseeing the school’s 20 Division I programs, Baumgartner has drawn on her 16 previous years experience as a collegiate administrator and another 17 serving as either a coach or student-athlete.
Baumgartner,
hired in July 2015
, served a four-year stint as deputy athletics director/chief of staff at Syracuse University. She oversaw the daily operation of tickets, fundraising, marketing and promotions, and media relations and was the department’s liaison with men’s basketball, and had direct supervision of men’s and women’s lacrosse, women’s soccer, softball, women’s tennis and volleyball.
In addition to spearheading the fundraising for the $38 million, 50,000-square-foot
Stephen C. and Patricia A. Schott Athletic Excellence Center
, she hired veteran, accomplished basketball coaches in Herb Sendek for the Santa Clara men’s program and Bill Carr for the women’s team, and directed an upgrade to Leavey Center. The men’s and women’s basketball teams moved into state-of-the-art locker rooms during the 2015-16 season and the following year those squads, plus volleyball, played on a one-of-a-kind floor.
Baumgartner arrived to Syracuse in 2011 after a 17-year tenure at the University of Oregon, where she was as an administrator and head women’s golf coach. In her role as the executive senior associate athletics director and senior woman administrator (SWA), roles she assumed in 2009, Baumgartner assisted with the daily operation and management of the 19-sport department, assisted with strategic planning, budget management, and personnel departments. She was the sport supervisor for men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, softball, women’s soccer, women’s volleyball, women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s tennis, and acrobatics and tumbling.
As a student-athlete, Baumgartner helped USC to third and fourth place finishes nationally in 1986 and ’87, respectively. Among her many honors are the 2006 All-American Football Foundation Senior Associate Athletics Director/SWA Award, the 1986-87 USC Scholar Athlete Award of Honor, in addition to induction in the Central Catholic High School Hall of Fame and the National Golf Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
She and her husband, Scott, are the parents of two daughters, Ellie and Abby.
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Al Guido, President of the San Francisco 49ers
Al Guido was named President of the San Francisco 49ers on February 15, 2016. Guido oversees all key business initiatives for the team. Guido also concurrently serves as the CEO and co-managing partner of Elevate Sports Ventures, which – launched in 2018 – works to bring comprehensive business solutions to the sports and entertainment industry that identify new revenue opportunities and bring new, innovative ideas to market.
Prior to being named President of the 49ers, Guido served as the team's chief operating officer from 2014-16. Levi's Stadium has proven itself as a 360-degree entertainment venue in its first four years under Guido's leadership. The venue has hosted Super Bowl 50, WrestleMania 31, Major League Soccer, multiple Pac-12 Championship Football games, International Soccer giants Manchester United and Barcelona, Taylor Swift, Kenny Chesney, Grateful Dead, and NHL Outdoor Classic. In 2017, the stadium played host to the largest soccer tournament on U.S. soil since the World Cup with the Copa America Centenario as well as hosted the prestigious 2019 College Football Playoff National Championship.
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Upcoming Event Schedule
June 20: Bocce Battle
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San Jose Sports Authority | info@sjsa.org | www.sjsa.org
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