Nike & U.S. Soccer Foundation Celebrate Field Opening For Boys & Girls Club Of Greater Washington
World-class FieldTurf soccer field gives Club kids a better place to play

May 11, 2007 (Washington, D.C.) - As part of a commitment to get kids moving and improve their lives through sport, Nike and the U.S. Soccer Foundation celebrated the opening of a world-class FieldTurf soccer field located at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington in southeast Washington D.C. on Friday, May 11. Soccer star Freddy Adu, who helped kick off the project in 2004, joined the festivities along with community leaders, to celebrate and begin play on the new mini soccer field, which replaces a parking lot that was previously attached to Robert V. Murray Clubhouse #11.

Teenage soccer star Freddy Adu celebrates the grand opening of the new FieldTurf field with children of the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Washington Robert V. Murray Clubhouse #11. Photo: Howard Smith, International Sports Images

Freddy Adu, former D.C. United player who now plays with Real Salt Lake in Major League Soccer, helped launch this project in 2004 and feels a strong tie to Boys & Girls Club of America as well as the greater Washington community. "I was lucky that I grew up in a neighborhood, both in Ghana and here in the States, where each day I could play soccer every chance I got," said Adu. "As a kid, being active and playing around is an important part of your childhood and I learned first-hand how much it can help you - keeping your body and mind healthy."

Adu joined representatives from the Boys & Girls Club, community leaders and U.S. Soccer Foundation President John Koskinen to dedicate the field and lead a soccer clinic for local children. Officials from the Boys and Girls club acknowledged the support of the key partners in the project including The Sports Authority, FieldTurf, Musco Sports Lighting, Clough Harbour Sports, Kwik Goal, TGI Systems, Ballard Sports, and D.C. United.

The field donation is part of Nike's Reuse-A-Shoe program which has the mission of "inspiring recycling and improving lives through sport and places to play." The program takes worn-out athletic shoes and/or footwear manufacturing materials, grinds them up into a material called Nike Grind, and uses that material to create new sports surfaces. This new field incorporates approximately 20 percent Nike Grind Rubber (totaling 5,000 lbs and representing the remains from manufacturing approximately 20,000 pair of sports shoes) and is a shining example of environmental innovation and giving-back to communities without which would be unable to provide this quality of facility.

Children of the Boys & Girls Club take their best shots on goal at the grand opening of the new mini soccer field. Photo: Howard Smith, International Sports Images

"This field is an expression of our belief in the power of sport to improve lives," said Joe Elsmore, Nike's Director of Soccer Sports Marketing. "By bringing world-class fields to areas otherwise underserved, our goal is to create greater access and opportunity for youth in these communities to play soccer and enjoy the many benefits it can bring - be it better long term health, or learning basic life skills such as teamwork, leadership etc."

"The new FieldTurf soccer field at Clubhouse #11 creates exciting new opportunities for young Boys & Girls Club members to play and enjoy the game of soccer," said John Koskinen, President of the U.S. Soccer Foundation. "As the Major Charitable Arm of Soccer in the U.S., the Foundation is thrilled to support the growth of the game in our own backyard through innovative projects like this one."

One of the largest affiliates of Boys & Girls Clubs of America, Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington (BGCGW) serves 30,000 children in 22 Clubs in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia.  Their mission is to help boys and girls of all backgrounds, especially those who need us most, build confidence, develop character and acquire the skills needed to become productive, civic-minded, responsible adults. Through a variety of educational, sports and recreation, health, arts, and character development programs, BGCGW creates a positive environment where children are encouraged to develop their ambitions and turn them into reality. 

"We are very excited about the new soccer field donated by Nike and the U.S. Soccer Foundation to our Robert V. Murray Clubhouse #11," said Will Gunn, President and CEO, BGCGW. "We are looking forward to utilizing this field as part of our Sports Fitness & Recreation core area as well as to reintroduce the sport of soccer and the values of teamwork and sportsmanship."

A member of the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Washington demonstrates her juggling skills at the grand opening of the new field in southeast Washington, D.C. Photo: Howard Smith, International Sports Images

The new soccer field is located in Ward 8 in Southeast Washington, D.C.  Replacing the Clubhouse parking lot with this state-of-the-art mini soccer field supports the Club's ongoing efforts to regain its popularity among neighborhood children and diversify the programming offered to its members.  The small size of the field is ideal for introducing younger players to the game and encouraging players of all ages to develop their technical soccer skills.

About Nike Reuse-A-Shoe / Nike Grind / NikeGO
Nike Reuse-A-Shoe takes old, worn-out athletic shoes and other footwear manufacturing materials, grinds it up into Nike Grind, then uses that in high quality sports and play surfaces. Many of these fields, courts, tracks and playgrounds are already installed in top sports facilities around the world. Through its signature community investment program NikeGO, grant donations are made to bring some of these surfaces to communities where new facilities are really needed and kids can enjoy the many physical and social benefits of play and sport. Since 1993, Nike has contributed to more than 250 surfaces around the world. Worn Out. Play On. For more information visit www.nikereuseashoe.com or www.nikego.com.

About the United States Soccer Foundation
The U.S. Soccer Foundation was established in 1994 to manage the surplus funds generated by the 1994 FIFA World Cup held in the United States. As the major charitable arm of soccer in the U.S., the Foundation has invested more than $40 million in the game, supporting hundreds of projects and touching every state in the country over the last decade. The Foundation provides grants focused on developing players, coaches and referees and building or enhancing fields and soccer complexes, with a special emphasis on economically disadvantaged youth in urban communities.  For more information, or to donate online, please visit ussoccerfoundation.org.

Contacts 
KeJuan Wilkins, Nike, Inc. 917.238.9900, kejuan.wilkins@nike.com
Matt Sicchio, U.S. Soccer Foundation, 202.872.6656, mts@ussoccerfoundation.org
Kerrin Torres, Boys & Girls Club, 301-562-2012, ktorres@bgcgw.org