Sporting KC Weekly Update: March 28, 2012
Olympic Qualifying at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park this weekend
Sporting Kansas City to face Chivas USA on the road Sunday
Sporting Kansas City defeats FC Dallas 2-1
Kamara and Nagamura team up for Schools for Salone
Sporting Club and YMCA of Greater KC launch Sporting Tykes
Sporting KC unveils Goals for Gillis
Juniors goalkeeper Jacole Turner invited to train with U.S. Under-18s
LIVESTRONG Sporting Park security manager wins national award
Sporting Kansas City reserves fall 3-0 to Houston Dynamo
Sporting Kansas City waives Birahim Diop
Robb and Amber Heineman nominated for Power Duo of the Year
Sporting KC Show airs at 7pm on 610 Sports Radio on Thursday
Application process for Sporting 22 now open
Besler gives back
Sporting KC unveils boys and girls youth soccer camps for 2012
Follow Sporting Kansas City online
OLYMPIC QUALIFYING AT LIVESTRONG SPORTING PARK THIS WEEKEND
The semifinals and final match of the CONCACAF Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournament will be held at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park this Saturday and Monday, respectively. The two semifinal winners on Saturday will qualify for the 2012 Olympic Games in London this summer and will then face off on Monday in the championship match. The schedule is as follows:
Saturday: Honduras vs. El Salvador (5 p.m. CT), Mexico vs. Canada (8 p.m. CT)
Monday: Semifinal 1 winner vs. Semifinal 2 winner (7 p.m. CT)
Tickets are still available a online at ticketmaster.com, by phone at 1-800-745-3000, at local Ticketmaster ticket centers in Kansas City and at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park's box offices (open Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. CT).
SPORTING KANSAS CITY TO FACE CHIVAS USA ON THE ROAD SUNDAY
Sporting Kansas City (3-0-0) will look to keep their winning streak alive Sunday against Chivas USA (1-2-0) at 8 p.m. CT at the Home Depot Center. The match will be broadcast live on KSMO-TV, with coverage beginning at 7:30 p.m. CT.
Chivas USA is currently bottom of the Western Conference, most recently defeating Real Salt Lake by a 1-0 scoreline last Saturday.
SPORTING KANSAS CITY DEFEATS FC DALLAS 2-1
Sporting Kansas City is the only team in MLS with three wins from three matches following their2-1 win over FC Dallas last Sunday. Defender Aurelien Collin notched a goal just before end of the first half and forward Kei Kamara scored the winner in the 88th minute on an assist from Chance Myers and Graham Zusi.
Kamara leads the league in shots (24) and shots on goal (11), while Zusi leads the league in assists (4). Sporting Kansas City is currently ranked first in the MLS Power Rankings.
KAMARA AND NAGAMURA TEAM UP FOR SCHOOLS FOR SALONE
Sporting Kansas City players Kei Kamara and Paulo Nagamura will join Chivas USA stars Michael Lahoud and Ryan Smith to raise money for schools in Sierra Leone through the non-profit organization Schools for Salone.
Lahoud, like Kamara, is originally from Sierra Leone, and will host his second annual meet and greet and will be joined by Kamara, Nagamura and Smith. For a minimum $5 donation, fans can meet and take pictures with the four players at the Home Depot Center after the match on April 1. All proceeds will go towards rebuilding many rural schools that were destroyed in Sierra Leone's ten-year civil war. Click here to donate. If you are interested in attending the event, call Jennifer Miller at (310) 630-4587.
SPORTING CLUB AND YMCA OF GREATER KC LAUNCH SPORTING TYKES
Sporting Kansas City, Sporting Club and the YMCA of Greater Kansas City unveiled a new partnership on Monday to launch Sporting Tykes, a soccer program for kids between the ages of 3-5 years old.
The program will begin this spring at 12 of the YMCA of Greater Kansas City's 18 locations and will provide six one-hour sessions that will include structured practices and organized games. Each meeting will be designed to build confidence, develop teamwork, teach social skills and introduce the basics of soccer in a positive and fun environment.
Sporting Kansas City will host "Y" night in conjunction with their match on Saturday, May 5th, featuring discounted tickets for YMCA members and special gameday activities. YMCA members are encouraged to contact Sporting Kansas City account executive Zach Robinson at 913-387-3421 for ticket information.
SPORTING KC UNVEILS GOAL FOR GILLIS
Sporting Kansas City announced Tuesday that the club has partnered with Gillis to launch Goals for Gillis, a program that will raise money to help at-risk children and families with every goal Sporting Kansas City scores throughout the 2012 season.
Fans can participate by making a pledge starting at $1 for every goal that Sporting Kansas City scores during the 2012 season. The top four Goals for Gillis fundraisers will be recognized online and at a special event with Heineman and Sporting Kansas City forward Kei Kamara after the completion of the 2012 season. Those pledging at least $5 per goal by April 30 will be entered to win an autographed, one-of-a-kind portrait of Kamara by local artist Jeffrey Barge.
For more information on Goals for Gillis, click here.
JUNIORS GOALKEEPER JACOLE TURNER INVITED TO TRAIN WITH U.S. UNDER- 18'S
Sporting Kansas City Juniors goalkeeper Jacole Turner was selected to the United States Under-18 Men's National Team for a training camp from March 25 through April 1 in Carson, Calif., the U.S. Soccer Federation announced on Friday.
One of four goalkeepers on the 35-player roster, Turner will be participating in his first training camp with a United States youth national team and will train under new Under-18 head coach Javier Perez.
Turner, 17, was named to the U.S. Soccer Development Academy All-Central Conference Starting XI for the 2010-2011 season. A standout at Lee's Summit North High School, he was voted Class 3 Goalkeeper of the Year in Missouri and was a First Team All-State honoree.
LIVESTRONG SPORTING PARK SECURITY MANAGER WINS NATIONAL AWARD
David Dollase, Safety and Security Manager for LIVESTRONG Sporting Park is the MLS' recipient of the "2012 National Sport Safety and Security Professional of the Year" award. Dollase established all security protocols for the venue, which opened in 2011, and supervised the installation and implementation of the venue's CCTV system, which provides constant monitoring of the facility that was recently nominated for Sports Business Journal's facility of the year.
Dollase developed and operated effective security protocols for high level VIPs and the security around them. In addition to these specific achievements he is responsible for day-to-day security team management and is involved in all decision made involving a security risk.
SPORTING KANSAS CITY RESERVES FALL 3-0 TO HOUSTON DYNAMO
The Houston Dynamo defeated Sporting Kansas City 3-0 on Tuesday in MLS Reserve League action at the Sporting Club Training Center in Swope Park. Three second-half goals paced the Dynamo in a match that saw a 30-minute weather delay during the first half.
Goals from Cam Weaver, Alex Dixon and Colin Rolfe secured the victory for Houston, who move to 2-0-0 in the 2012 Reserve League schedule while Sporting Kansas City suffer their first loss in the competition after drawing 1-1 away to Real Salt Lake last week.
SPORTING KANSAS CITY WAIVES BIRAHIM DIOP
Sporting Kansas City has waived forward Birahim Diop. The 33-year-old Senegal native scored five goals in 32 regular season MLS matches for Sporting Kansas City after arriving at the start of the 2010 season.
In 2011, Diop made 18 appearances in the MLS regular season with one assist and also entered as a second-half substitute in the second leg of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
ROBB AND AMBER HEINEMAN NOMINATED FOR POWER DUO OF THE YEAR
Sporting Club CEO Robb Heineman and his wife Amber are among four finalists for Kansas City's Power Duo. The award, bestowed by KC Connections, is based on the following five criteria: vision and leadership, innovation and achievement, impact, growth/development strategy and community involvement. Read their bios here.
Voting is open through April 12th and is based on which Power Duo can raise the most money for their charity of choice. The Heinemans have designated Gillis, a local non-profit organization that has served children and families in the Kansas City community for more than a century, to receive the proceeds should they win. Every $10 donation contributed counts as one vote.
SPORTING KC SHOW AIRS AT 7PM ON 610 SPORTS RADIO ON THURSDAY
Sporting Kansas City's weekly radio show will again be available over the airwaves on Thursday with hosts Callum Williams and Jake Yadrich on 610 Sports Radio. Tune in from 7-8 p.m. CT to hear from Sporting Kansas City players and call 913-576-7610 to join the discussion around all the latest news.
APPLICATION PROCESS FOR SPORTING 22 PROGRAM NOW OPEN
Sporting Kansas City's community outreach program Sporting 22 is now accepting applications for the 2012 season. Sporting 22 awards scholarships to 22 high school students to explore, develop and execute local initiatives that use soccer to impact the overall health and well-being of thousands Kansas City children. The students have from June to December to activate their programs and start a lifelong path of civic engagement in the communities they serve.
Sporting Kansas City defender Matt Besler is a candidate for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Man of the Year campaign in the Kansas City region.Fans, friends and family interested in donating to Besler's Man of the Year campaign may do so by making a donation on Besler's LLS webpage or may bid on four premium items on Besler's personal Twitter page this month with new items appearing every two weeks ending on April 26.
SPORTING KC UNVEILS BOYS AND GIRLS YOUTH SOCCER CAMPS FOR 2012
Sporting Kansas City and the Sporting Kansas City Juniors youth development academy will again offer a series of youth soccer camps in 2012 for boys and girls of all ages. Please see the list of scheduled camps below:
Invite-Only Sessions: April 9 - May 14 (Monday's only) for U11 - U14 boys ($255)
Pre-Tryout Camp: June 4-6 for U11-U14 boys ($130)
Boys & Girls Development Camp: June 18-20 for boys and girls ages 8-12 ($130)
Sporting Youngsters Camp: June 11-14 for boys and girls ages 4-7 ($100)
Sporting Development Camp: June 11-14 for boys and girls ages 8-12 ($150)
FOLLOW SPORTING KANSAS CITY ONLINE
Sporting Kansas City fans looking to keep up with the club on the worldwide web now have a place to go. The new social media page on SportingKC.com features Twitter account information for the club, its players as well as many staff members. Additionally, fans may take advantage of the Media Recap page for all the latest independent news coverage available online.
