Post by Mac on Apr 11, 2007 15:12:53 GMT -5
Giving Back to the Game
By Greg Ball
Account Executive
Brener Zwikel & Associates
When former beach volleyball star Sinjin Smith was a child, he’d head down to the beach near his Santa Monica home and watch some of the top stars of the day compete on the sand courts. Hanging around the beach from sunup to sundown nearly every day during the summer, he learned the game virtually through osmosis. Now 49, Smith is giving back by teaching the basics of the game to children.
He spends his summers traveling the country with the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Crocs Tour and, at each
stop, uses his Saturdays and Sundays to teach the fundamentals of the game to
local volleyball enthusiasts, mostly youths, on the Crocs Court at each event.
Young people from Fountain Valley, Huntington Beach, Ocean View,
Westminster, and the surrounding areas can join in these clinics free of charge
when the AVP comes to the Huntington Beach Pier for the Huntington Beach
Open from May 3–6.
“I really enjoy working with the young people,” Smith said. “I got lucky
growing up the way I did and couldn’t help but learn the game. But now we can
provide opportunities for today’s youth. We can give them something to do
during the summer. We teach them how to play the game, they have fun, and, if
they have a propensity for sports, as they grow up to love the game. What they
do in sports when they’re young is critical to whether or not they’ll be successful
later on.”
Getting Involved
The AVP will also host a Hilton AVP Youth Volleyball Clinic free of charge at
the Huntington Beach Open, in which local players can receive instruction from
2004 Olympic bronze medalist Elaine Youngs, 2006 AVP Most Improved Player
Nicole Branagh, and top coach Liz Masakayan.
Parents interested in signing their children up for clinics or to be ballkids
during AVP matches can find more information at www.avp.com/huntington.
Along with the current players, Smith is a perfect candidate for teaching the
game. Aside from his involvement in the Crocs Court clinics, Smith is also a television
commentator on FOX Sports’ telecasts of the AVP Tour, but he’s best
known for his success as a player.
Volleyball Hall of Fame in 2003, owns 129 domestic wins and 10 more international wins. He was a member of the UCLA national championship teams in 1976 and 1979 and was an All- American twice. He also played on the U.S. team in the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, the first Olympics that included beach volleyball.
Known for his mental toughness and relentless defense, Smith was named the AVP’s Defensive Player of the Year in 1990, 1991 and 1992.
With all the opportunities the game of volleyball has provided him, he said it is only natural to want to give back. The Crocs Court clinics offer a perfect opportunity
to do just that. “In what other sport, during the highest level of competition, can you watch the action on center court, then take a 200-foot walk over to the Crocs Court and play with some of the greatest just doesn’t happen in any other sport.”
www.schoolnewsrollcall.com/Current%20Issues/LB_APR07.pdf
By Greg Ball
Account Executive
Brener Zwikel & Associates
When former beach volleyball star Sinjin Smith was a child, he’d head down to the beach near his Santa Monica home and watch some of the top stars of the day compete on the sand courts. Hanging around the beach from sunup to sundown nearly every day during the summer, he learned the game virtually through osmosis. Now 49, Smith is giving back by teaching the basics of the game to children.
He spends his summers traveling the country with the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Crocs Tour and, at each
stop, uses his Saturdays and Sundays to teach the fundamentals of the game to
local volleyball enthusiasts, mostly youths, on the Crocs Court at each event.
Young people from Fountain Valley, Huntington Beach, Ocean View,
Westminster, and the surrounding areas can join in these clinics free of charge
when the AVP comes to the Huntington Beach Pier for the Huntington Beach
Open from May 3–6.
“I really enjoy working with the young people,” Smith said. “I got lucky
growing up the way I did and couldn’t help but learn the game. But now we can
provide opportunities for today’s youth. We can give them something to do
during the summer. We teach them how to play the game, they have fun, and, if
they have a propensity for sports, as they grow up to love the game. What they
do in sports when they’re young is critical to whether or not they’ll be successful
later on.”
Getting Involved
The AVP will also host a Hilton AVP Youth Volleyball Clinic free of charge at
the Huntington Beach Open, in which local players can receive instruction from
2004 Olympic bronze medalist Elaine Youngs, 2006 AVP Most Improved Player
Nicole Branagh, and top coach Liz Masakayan.
Parents interested in signing their children up for clinics or to be ballkids
during AVP matches can find more information at www.avp.com/huntington.
Along with the current players, Smith is a perfect candidate for teaching the
game. Aside from his involvement in the Crocs Court clinics, Smith is also a television
commentator on FOX Sports’ telecasts of the AVP Tour, but he’s best
known for his success as a player.
Volleyball Hall of Fame in 2003, owns 129 domestic wins and 10 more international wins. He was a member of the UCLA national championship teams in 1976 and 1979 and was an All- American twice. He also played on the U.S. team in the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, the first Olympics that included beach volleyball.
Known for his mental toughness and relentless defense, Smith was named the AVP’s Defensive Player of the Year in 1990, 1991 and 1992.
With all the opportunities the game of volleyball has provided him, he said it is only natural to want to give back. The Crocs Court clinics offer a perfect opportunity
to do just that. “In what other sport, during the highest level of competition, can you watch the action on center court, then take a 200-foot walk over to the Crocs Court and play with some of the greatest just doesn’t happen in any other sport.”
www.schoolnewsrollcall.com/Current%20Issues/LB_APR07.pdf