CSR (Former Soviet Union Gold Medalist and Olympic Coach to Headline Weekend Conference at Calvin)

CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR JULY 9, 2007

Calvin to Host Two Days of Weekend Conference Featuring Former Soviet Gold Medalist and Olympic Throwing Coach

GRAND RAPIDS - Calvin College will share in the hosting of an upcoming conference featuring several international Olympic coaches speaking on performance training for athletes.

The seminar: "Advanced Training for High Level Sport: The Transfer of Training and Block Periodization" will be held at Calvin July 13 and 14 (in the Bytwerk Theatre inside the DeVos Communication Center) and at the Holiday Crowne Inn in Grand Rapids on July 15. Scheduled to speak at the seminar are Dr. Anatoly Bondarchuk, Dr. Vladimir Issurin, and Dr. Michael Yessis.
Bondarchuk is renowned as an athlete (1972 Olympic Champion and European Champion in the hammer throw as well as a former World Record Holder) and his coaching credentials are significant. His research into technique and high-performance training methods formed the basis for many of the common techniques and practices used by the world's top athletes today. He developed the USSR National Team throws program from 1976 to 1992 from which he produced numerous World and Olympic Champions.

Issurin serves as a scientific and professional coordinator at the Elite Sport Department of the Israeli Olympic Committee at the Wingate Institute. He served as a scientific adviser and head of the complex scientific group for the USSR Olympic canoe/kayak team during three quadrennial cycles (1978-1991) and received two governmental awards. Since 1991 he has lived in Israel and works as a researcher, professional consultant and coordinator for the Israeli Olympic National teams.

Yessis received his Ph.D. from the University of Southern California and his B.S. and M.S. from City University of New York. He is president of Sports Training, Inc., a diverse sports and fitness company, and also is professor emeritus at California State University, Fullerton, where he is a multi-sports specialist in biomechanics (technique analysis) and sports conditioning and training. In his work, Dr. Yessis has developed many unique specialized strength and speed-strength (explosive) training programs. He has served as training and technique consultant to several Olympic and professional sports teams.

Calvin College track and field throwing coach Norm Zylstra has been working with tournament organizer Yosef Johnson to help put together the weekend conference. Zylstra is looking forward to learning new techniques and strategies in helping coach his athletes.

"I will be able to spend time with the presenters throughout the week outside the conference time," said Zylstra who has helped his throwers collect NCAA III All-America accolades 17 times since taking over as throwing coach in 1997. "I hope to discover what their priorities are when training the mind as well as the body. I am curious how these dynamics were addressed in their state run systems and how they address them in their current training environment."

Zylstra also notes that all Calvin faculty will be able to attend the weekend seminar free of charge. "This is a rare opportunity for the public," said Zylstra. "We're very pleased to have coaches of this caliber visit our campus for two days."

A complete seminar schedule along with registration information can be found on-line at: http://www.ultimateathleteconcepts.com/registration.html

Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Mon Jul 9 22:43:26 2007