07.14.08
Posted in Schools, Championships, Taft, Olympics at 4:46 pm by Administrator
Dear Prospective Donor,
One of our own, Billy Nelson, is going to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China to represent our community and the United States of American in the Track & Field games. That is an accomplishment to be lauded greatly in and of itself, as Billy has been a decorated athlete both from the Wildcats of Taft Union High School and for the Buffaloes of Colorado and is continuing those accomplishments well thereafter. However, the predicament does not lay with Billy, per say. Rather, it is in getting his family (his soon-to-be wife, Alisa, his one year-old daughter, Arabella, and his mother, Rhonda, & stepfather, Bill) to China to be with Billy during this monumental, yet extremely trying time in each of their lives. It is for this reason I am writing you in hopes of garnering your assistance in sending them to Beijing along with Billy.
After researching the costs involved (i.e. airfare, hotel stay, meals, and transportation - not to mention the costs of obtaining their required passports and tourist visas), we’ve determined it is going to cost upwards of $15,000 to send Alisa, Arabella, Rhonda and Bill to Beijing for the Olympic Games. Our goal is to raise at least $10,000 to aid them in this endeavor.
Therefore, it is with an extremely humble, yet gracious heart that we ask for you assistance in making their Olympic dream come true. It is not very often that our own town sends an athlete to represent not only us, but our entire country on the world’s largest and most prestigious stage. This journey will be rewarding, yet mentally and physically arduous nonetheless, which is why we’re striving to send Billy’s family with him to these Olympic Games.
Should you be interested in assisting us in any matter, please find our contact information attached, along with information regarding the fund to which donations can be made. Any and all donations will be greatly appreciated and duly recognized. This is an event which is not only for Billy and his family, but for our community as well - a fact which Billy had overtly stressed in our discussions in this regard.
In closing, on behalf of Billy and his family, we extend our most sincere gratitude - as it is with your help and generosities that we will make this dream a reality.
Kindest Regards,
Bill & Rhonda Blythe, Josh Bryant, Don Schock, and (most importantly) Billy, Alisa, and Arabella.
Contact Information:
Josh Bryant
661-477-3230 (cell)
661-765-3058 (Work Office, Direct)
joshuarobertbryant@hotmail.com
josharobertbryant@gmail.com
Don Schock
661-979-1549 (cell)
661-765-5330 (Work)
dschock_30@hotmail.com
don@genprod.com
Donations Can Be Made to the Following:
“The Billy Nelson Olympic Fund”
United Security Bank
523 Cascade Place
Taft, Ca 93268
(661) 763-5151
We’re selling commemorative and supportive T-shorts to raise funds for Billy & his family! T-shirt’s are being prepared and distributed courtesy of Pride Athletics here in Taft for $15.00 each, IN ANY SIZE, with $10 from each shirt going to the fund and the rest covering the cost of the shirts themselves! Please give the Dayton’s a big hug & ‘Thank You” for their support while you’re buying your shirt, supporting our hometown hero, and supporting this great cause! Orders can be placed by contacting those above or by going directly to Pride Athletics, or by calling them at the number below.
Pride Athletics
716 Center St.
Taft, Ca 93268
(661) 765 - 9194
We’ll also be holding a car wash (or two) to help raise funds. Please contact us for more details.
THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT AND HELP - WE APPRECIATE IT!!!!
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06.27.08
Posted in Schools, Championships, Kern Track Results, Track Meets, Upcoming, BHS, CSUB, Shafter, Taft, Olympics, Bakersfield at 5:53 am by Administrator
Men’s 110m Hurdles
Thomas Mack University of California, Berkeley Berkeley, CA 13.74 - BAKERSFIELD HS
Men’s 3000m Steeplechase
William Nelson University of Colorado Longmont, CO 8:28.85 - TAFT HS (CE)
Men’s Shot Put
Chris Figures unattached Bakersfield, CA 20.38 - SOUTH HS (BAK)
Men’s Hammer Throw
Arnaldo Cueto unattached Bakersfield, CA 68.50 - CAL ST BAKERSFIELD - HS ??
Women’s Discus Throw
Rachel Varner unattached Bakersfield, CA 56.72 - BAKERSFIELD HS
Anastasia Jelmini unattached Bakersfield, CA 56.06 - SHAFTER HS
Cecilia Barnes unattached Bakersfield, CA 61.99 - CLOVIS WEST HS (FRESNO
california preps at the olympic trials HERE
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05.16.08
Posted in Yada Yada, Profiles, Athletes, Championships, Sports, Track Meets, Upcoming, WTF, Olympics, Noise Flash!!! at 3:26 pm by Administrator
Amputee runner Oscar Pistorius wins appeal
By COLLEEN BARRY, Associated Press Writer
MILAN, Italy (AP)—His Olympic dream suddenly revived, Oscar Pistorius can get back to what he loves most—running.
The double-amputee sprinter from South Africa was cleared Friday to compete in his bid to qualify for the Beijing Games.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned a ruling by the International Association of Athletics Federations that barred the 21-year-old runner from the Olympics and any other able-bodied competition because of his prosthetic racing blades.
Pistorius broke into a broad smile to a roomful of applause when the decision was announced. He reached toward his manager, Peet van Zyl, for a victory handshake.
“I am ecstatic,” Pistorius said. “When I found out I was crying. It is a battle that has been going on for far too long. It’s a great day for sport. I think this day is going to go down in history for the equality of disabled people.”
He is the first to acknowledge it will be a challenge to make it to the Aug. 8-24 Beijing Games. He holds the 400-meter Paralympic world record of 46.56, but must reach the qualifying time of 45.55 to compete in the individual event in Beijing.
“My hopes are very big for the Olympics for 2008,” Pistorius said. “I think the time period at the moment is very short. Obviously, I have the opportunity, so I am not going to let it go … but it is going to be very difficult in order to run those times.”
However, Pistorius also could be invited to join the South African relay team, which would not require him to qualify.
“We are very much hopeful that he will be part and parcel of our team,” said Leonard Chuene, president of Athletics South Africa.
If Pistorius does go to the Olympics, he will be competing alongside another amputee South African athlete: Natalie du Toit, who qualified for Beijing in open-water swimming.
Pistorius was born without fibulas—the long, thin outer bone between the knee and ankle—and was 11 months old when his legs were amputated below the knee.
“Oscar Pistorius is a determined and gutsy athlete who will now no doubt put all his energy into reaching the qualification standards for the Olympic Games,” the International Olympic Committee said in a statement. “If he makes it we would be delighted to welcome him.”
Pistorius will resume training in South Africa on Monday, before returning to Europe on May 28. Van Zyl said Pistorius will be running in able-bodied races July 2 in Milan and July 11 at the Golden Gala in Rome, and that many other offers have been coming in.
“A lot of the time we’ve had this year we’ve devoted to the court case,” Pistorius said. “Now when I get home my time can be dedicated to training. I am going to have to start thinking about getting my body in shape in order to run those (qualifying) times. I am hopeful there will be enough time but it is going to be very difficult.”
Regardless of whether he runs in the Olympics, Pistorius plans to compete in Beijing at the Sept. 6-17 Paralympics. He will prepare by running in disabled events in the Netherlands and Germany.
Pistorius appealed to CAS, the highest tribunal in international sports, to overturn a Jan. 14 ruling by the IAAF. Track and field’s ruling organization banned him from competing against able-bodied runners on grounds that his carbon fiber blades gave him a mechanical advantage.
A two-day hearing was held before three arbitrators at CAS headquarters last month. The panel said the IAAF decision is “revoked with immediate effect and the athlete is eligible to compete in IAAF events.”
“Oscar will be welcomed wherever he competes this summer,” IAAF president Lamine Diack said in a statement. “He is an inspirational man and we look forward to admiring his achievements in the future.”
Even if Pistorius fails to get the 400-meter qualifying time, South African selectors could add the University of Pretoria student to the Olympic 1,600-meter relay squad if it qualifies for the games among the top 16 in the world.
Pistorius would not require a qualifying time and could be taken to Beijing as an alternate. Six runners can be picked for the relay squad.
The IAAF based its January decision on studies by German professor Gert-Peter Brueggemann, who said the J-shaped “Cheetah” blades were energy efficient
Pistorius’ lawyers countered with independent tests conducted by a team led by MIT professor Hugh M. Herr that claimed to show he doesn’t gain any advantage over able-bodied runners.
CAS said the IAAF failed to prove Pistorius’ running blades gave him an advantage.
“If I had to look at the situation, how many amputee athletes use the exact same prosthetic leg as I do and don’t run nearly close to the same times?” Pistorius said. “I think running has become my purpose in life. It has become my calling in life.”
Associated Press Writers Graham Dunbar in Geneva and Celean Jacobson in Johannesburg, South Africa, contributed to this report.
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02.08.08
Posted in Training, Profiles, Coaches, Athletes, Championships, Track Meets, Results, Olympics at 10:30 pm by Administrator
An Interview With America’s Unkown 3:56.00 Miler- Steve Sherer
Posted Thursday, February 7, 2008 -
LetsRun.com’s Robert Johnson caught up with 26-year old American Steve Sherer on Tuesday night (Feb 5) with a half-hour phone call.
complete interview HERE
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07.19.07
Posted in Schools, Championships, Track Meets, Upcoming, Centennial, Olympics at 4:38 pm by Administrator
Would-be Junior Olympian needs pole for competition
BY EMILEIGH BARNES, Californian staff writer
e-mail: ebarnes@bakersfield.com | Wednesday, Jul 18 2007 9:25 PM
Last Updated: Wednesday, Jul 18 2007 9:28 PM
Jim Diller, 15, has dedicated his entire summer to the decathlon.
Six days a week, he runs between five and eight miles in the Bakersfield sun and trains on his own at Centennial High School.
When he traveled to Fresno for regional qualifiers in June, the “all-around athlete” placed first in his division.
Now, only days before the National Junior Olympics begin, Jim is facing a different kind of hurdle.
He has no pole to use in the vaulting competition.
Jim, who only competes in track and cross country during the school year, doesn’t own a pole. And regulations prevent schools from lending him one.
All other decathlon equipment is provided to Junior Olympics competitors, but poles are not because they must match an athlete’s weight and height and cost between $200 and $500 each, said Marci Diller, his mother.
The decathlon is a two-day event set to begin on Tuesday in Walnut.. If Jim doesn’t participate in the pole vaulting, he’ll be docked several hundred points, an obvious disadvantage, Marci said.
It’s getting down to the wire,” she said. “He’s gotten this far, and it’s sad if he can’t compete.”
New at parenting a track star, Marci said she only heard about the Junior Olympics when Jim’s coach said in May he had a chance to win.
Jim has looked forward to the competition ever since, even running with a local track club to get in some extra exercise, Marci said.
She added that she has exhausted several venues looking for a pole and even considered making fliers and passing them around the neighborhood.
Although one man said he may have a pole Jim can borrow, Marci said she isn’t counting on it.
Marci has asked that anyone who could lend her son a pole for the competition call her at 205-4348.
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07.06.07
Posted in Championships, Track Meets, Upcoming, Ridgeview, Olympics at 5:58 pm by Administrator
IOC approves first Youth Olympics
By: John Rice, The Associated Press
Posted: 7/6/07
GUATEMALA CITY - Olympic leaders voted Thursday to create a Youth Olympics meant to drag kids from computer screens and onto the playing fields. The first is planned for summer 2010 for 3,200 athletes, ages 14-18.
click HERE for the rest of the story.
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