Nebraska Sports Council Honors Top State Games Athletes, Volunteers
Governor Pete Ricketts was on hand on October 22nd to help the Nebraska Sports Council (NebraskaSportsCouncil.com) honor its top volunteers and athletes at the annual NSC Awards Banquet held at the Holiday Inn Downtown in Lincoln.
Athletes of the year included BMX and mountain biker Clay Clapp, 15, of Omaha; wrestler Josh Majerus, 28 of Genoa; fencer Amanda Bush, 33 of Greenwood; and muzzleloader Sandy Gesch, 65 of Omaha. Officials announced that Majerus had also been named National Male Athlete of the Year from among 500,000 State Games athletes across the country.
Cornhusker State Games (CSG) Soccer Director Geoff Weller was voted Sport Director of the Year by his peers, and multi-event “super-volunteer” and fitness advocate Todd Fitzgerald received the Joe Neal Memorial Volunteer of the Year Award.
Horseshoe Pitching Director Al Rosenbohm and Wrestling Director Craig Hellwege became the first Sport Directors in the 31-year history of the Games to receive awards for 30 years of service.
The 2015 State Games of America were the largest ever held, with more than 15,000 participants from 47 states and the District of Columbia. NSC Board Vice President Jeff Maul announced that the 2015 State Games of America had received the Event of the Year award from the Nebraska Tourism Commission’s Awards Banquet, which was going on at the same time in Columbus.
Other honorees included:
CSG 5-Years of Service: Jeanne Cuda, Baseball, Homer’s Heroes Division; Mike Gooch, Chess; Jeff White, Shore Fishing; Jason Cyboron, Boat Fishing; Bill Holt, Pickleball; Chris Westover, .22 Silhouette Shooting; Dan Myers, Sport Skydiving.
CSG 10-Years of Service: Jen Fraser, Electronic Darts; Trish Souliere, Fencing; Neal Craig, Horseshoe Pitching; Hilary Catron, Taekwondo; Mike Catron, Taekwondo; Kerry McDermott, Tennis; Janet Piercy, Waterskiing.
CSG 15-Years of Service: Jim Craig, Adventure Race; Duane West, Gymnastics.
CSG 25-Years of Service: Gary Bredehoft, Track & Field and Triathlon.
Earlier in the day, the Nebraska Sports Council held its annual Board meeting and re-elected Roger Lempke as President, Maul as Vice President and Rob Trebilcock as Secretary/Treasurer. State Games Softball Director Wendy Karr joined Disc Golf Director Anita Jackson as Sport Director representatives on the Board. Jessica Erstad, Joel Long, Stephanie Mattoon, Ed Swotek, Trebilcock and Josh White were all re-elected to two-year terms as at-large Board members.
The Board approved the addition of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to the Cornhusker State Games sport slate for 2016 and a schedule of events including the Governor’s Walk (Jan. TBA), Cornhusker State Games July 15-24, Mud Run Aug. 20, Pumpkin Run Oct. 8, Awards Banquet Oct. 27 and LinConnect (Nov. TBA).
The Board also approved a new event-centric format for the LiveWell Challenge. Individual awards will be earned based on the number of events completed. Corporate awards will also be awarded for employee participation in approved events. The new format and event calendar is expected to be released by Dec. 1.
Photos of the banquet can be viewed on the Nebraska Sports Council Facebook page. The Nebraska Sports Council is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization with a mission of providing quality competition and promoting healthy and active lifestyle choices.
Learn more about the Nebraska Sports Council at NebraskaSportsCouncil.com .