| Media Note Office of the Spokesman Washington, DC June 5, 2002 U.S. Department of State Hosts Sports Professionals from Around the WorldTwelve sports professionals from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean embarked June 5 on the Washington leg of a nine-day, three-city tour to focus on women’s health and sports in the United States. The sports professionals are participating in the International Visitor Program of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, which brings participants from around the world to the United States to meet and confer with their professional counterparts and to experience this country firsthand. The tour will highlight the progress made in gender equity in sports under Title IX, the law prohibiting discrimination in school athletics and academics based on gender. The International Visitor exchange program coincides with the thirtieth anniversary of Title IX. The program began Monday in Atlanta, Georgia, with a visit to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and a meeting with the President of the Women’s United Soccer Association. Additional meetings are also scheduled with the Georgia Women’s Intersport Network and with organizations in Gainesville, Georgia, site of several water sports events during the 1996 Summer Olympics. Continuing their program in Washington, D.C., the group will meet with a Member of the Congressional Caucus for Women’s Issues and representatives of the President’s Council on Physical Fitness. The sports professionals are also scheduled to visit Hill’s Gymnastics, training site for many U.S. Olympic gymnasts, including Dominique Dawes, and several offices in the Department of Health and Human Services, including the National Institutes of Health, to discuss a range of women’s health issues. An overview of Title IX and a roundtable discussion with several NGOs involved in sports and recreation for women and girls will also be included. The final days of the tour will be spent in New York. The sports professionals will examine programs to promote women in sports globally. They are also scheduled to spend a day in Long Island to learn about sports at the community level, including a tour of a sports medicine facility and a local community sports organization. Media contact: Nicole Deaner, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, phone 202-203-7613, email ndeaner@pd.state.gov. |
