Partnerships - TrueSport

TrueSport Partnerships Video Transcript

Kids yelling: TRUESPORT!

Male Narrator: It began with a vision. A vision of what youth sport can be. How it can help prepare young people for success in life. How it can be uplifting, positive, joyful. But somehow, the vision got disconnected from the reality. We forgot about winning the right way and focused on winning any way we could. We forgot about the simple power of play.

Female Narrator: What is TrueSport? We’re a grassroots movement dedicated to promoting a positive youth sport experience. An experience that builds core values and life skills. We support athletes, parents, and coaches by partnering with organizations throughout the country. We provide them with powerful tools, lessons, playbooks, videos, and more. We cover everything from good sportsmanship to good nutrition. Our athlete ambassadors include Olympic medalists and world champions. We’ve got some great credentials. TrueSport is powered by USADA, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. USADA’s mission is simple, preserve the integrity of sports at every level of competition. The need is real. We talked to parents and we learned that 85 percent agree that youth sport should reinforce positive values, but only 35 percent believe it’s actually building those values. TrueSport was created to close that gap, to be a force for real world change. Get to know a few of our partners and you’ll see that change at work.

Male Narrator: Simla, Colorado is a little town where big things are happening. It’s Big Sandy K-12 school is the first official TrueSport school thanks to the students themselves. The high school kids founded their own TrueSport club to share the message throughout the school. They take time to mentor the elementary students, teaching the TrueSport values and principles.

Sammi Swennes, 6-12 Principal: It’s going to teach kids values and integrity and morals, on and off the court.

Male Narrator: These kids have taken ownership of the TrueSport values, embraced them in their daily lives. What does TrueSport mean to them? You can hear it in their own words.

High school boy #1: It makes you want to make the right decision.

High school girl #1: I think it means respect for your teammates, respect for your coaches, and mostly respect for yourself, because if you are being a TrueSport, then you are showing that respect.

High school boy #2: It’s more than just the program in our school.

High school girl #1: I think all schools, big or small, could benefit from this.

High school girl #2: I think it’s just brought everyone together as a family.

High Schoolers yelling: TrueSport rules the school!

Male Narrator: Partnerships can be powerful. That’s why TrueSport teamed with USA Swimming to build values-based education into the successful Deck Pass Program. The centerpiece is an app that empowers kids to learn interactively. But that’s just the beginning. It’s a complete resource including video lessons. It’s helping these young athletes become better swimmers and better people. You can see its power at work here at the South Carolina Swim Club. Has it made a difference? Just listen.

Young male swimmer #1: I would describe DeckPass as fun, educational, and playful.

Young female swimmer #1: TrueSport’s for everything, it’s not just swimming. I mean, it’s for lacrosse, football, like, it’s not just for swimming.

Elizabeth “Bessie” Rea, SCSC Coach: TrueSport is absolutely helping change the culture of youth swimming.

Kate Borg, Olympian, Swim Mom, TrueSport Advocate: The partnership between TrueSport and USA Swimming has been amazingly impactful. The platform is super powerful and it’s right in the hands of the device that kids have every day.

Swimmers yelling: TRUESPORT!

Male Narrator: A’s and Aces was born out of the ruins of Hurricane Katrina. It brings youth tennis to public school kids throughout New Orleans. Kids who would otherwise have no access to the sport. But it’s more than tennis, it’s about the classroom as much as the court.

Freya Hoffman-Terry, COO, A’s and Aces: The program uses tennis as a sport to get students engaged in academics and life skills. It’s been wonderful having TrueSport ambassadors involved in our program. Last fall, we had DeeDee Trotter come and speak to the students. She really empowered them and excited them about competing at a professional level.

Olympian Lauryn Williams talking to youth tennis players: What does it mean to you, tell me what TrueSport means to you? How about you?

Freya Hoffman-Terry, COO, A’s and Aces: This afternoon we had Lauryn Williams stop by and the kids were just thrilled with getting a chance to meet her, to talk to her, to interact on a personal level.

Lauryn Williams, 4-Time Olympian, TrueSport Ambassador: The TrueSport program is really about being the best you you can possibly be. So, using your different skills to be able to uplift one another to make sure that you’re true to yourself and true to your teammates. It’s the easiest way to describe what TrueSport is.

Young male tennis player #1: It was awesome because Lauryn is the definition of a TrueSport.

Young male tennis player #2: TrueSport has taught me goal-setting, eating right, and being a gracious loser, because all of us lose a lot.

Freya Hoffman-Terry, COO, A’s and Aces: I’m so proud of how my students have responded to the TrueSport curriculum.

Male Narrator: In the world of lacrosse, Trevor Tierney is a legend, two-time All-American, All World goalie. It’s in impressive record, but there was something missing, something beyond winning.

Trevor Tierney, International Lacrosse Champion, TrueSport Ambassador: At the end of the day, all that stuff’s really great, and it means a lot, and it’s fun and it’s exciting, but you get done and you’re like, what have I gained from this? And at some point, we all go back into the real world and we’re provided this opportunity to give something back to our communities.

Male Narrator: Today, Trevor is giving back, as a coach and as a TrueSport Ambassador. Through his world-class camps, he shares his insights and values with thousands of young athletes, the next generation of lacrosse players.

Young male lacrosse player #1: A good sport is someone who knows how to win without gloating and is still happy for themselves. And when they lose, they know how to learn from their mistakes and be happy for the winner.

Trevor Tierney, International Lacrosse Champion, TrueSport Ambassador: We want to build a culture of excellence for our kids in all areas of their life both on and off the field.

Female Narrator: There’s a common thread that connects these stories. A faith that sport can transform the lives of our young people, a commitment to change sports culture for the better, and it’s happening. You can see it in the way the kids act on and off the field. You can see it in the numbers, too. In the past year, our reach and impact more than doubled, from 2.6 million to 5.3 million. More than 93 percent of kids say their experience had a positive impact. They described it as educational and meaningful, and said they applied TrueSport lessons to everyday life.

Male Narrator: That’s a powerful story. A story of real, positive change. Today in communities across America, TrueSport is working to turn its vision into reality. It’s coaches and parents, mentors and athlete ambassadors, most of all, it’s the young athletes themselves building the TrueSport values into their lives. It’s the TrueSport commitment to make sure that youth sport in America delivers on it’s bright, amazing promise.

Body Image Lesson Video Transcript

Hi, I’m Kara Winger, Olympic javelin thrower, and true sport athlete. Today I want to talk to you about body image and I have three things I’d like you to know. First, healthy thoughts often lead to healthier bodies. Second, there are varying body types and no one’s body is exactly like another. And third, true beauty goes deeper than the skin. As a multi-time Olympian, I’ve experienced a lot of variation and progression in my training. My coaches and I adapt to my training frequently, all with the goal of supporting my long-term success and health in the sport of javelin. I’m talking to you about body image today because sometimes even with the best of intentions and a common goal in mind, the changes you make to your training habits can prove to be detrimental if made for the wrong reasons. In the lead up to the 2012 Olympic trials, I was told in order to improve my performance on the field, I should try to become a leaner, skinnier version of myself.

So I changed my diet. I went along with what I was being told to do, even though I’d had great success at a slightly heavier weight and higher body fat percentage, and became much leaner than ever before. It seemed like a successful change at first, but I didn’t have nearly the results I’d had before. And I believe becoming leaner than my body naturally wanted to be was what caused my ACL to tear. In the end, it cost me heavily going into the 2012 London games. The takeaway for me, and hopefully for you, is that it’s important to know what works for you and your body and to not compare yourself to others. You should do your research and experiment with your diet to find what makes you feel the best, rather than focusing on what you look like. Today, if I feel like having a chocolate chip cookie, I have one, just not every day.

I’ve learned what a properly balanced meal for my body looks like and I recognize food as the fuel that keeps me throwing. I hydrate and allow myself time to recover. And I listen to and communicate with my body so that I can be the best version of myself. In the end, you are in control of how you see, treat, and respond to your body. We only get one and it’s amazing to discover how many things our bodies can do. Be a true sport athlete. Love who you are in this moment and get excited for all the places your body will take you.

THE SIMPLE TRUTH: DECODING THE SUPPLEMENT INDUSTRY VIDEO TRANSCRIPT

At first glance, dietary supplements look the same. They seem safe and healthy, but just because the label says a product is a dietary supplement, that doesn’t mean it’s safe. Unfortunately, you can’t tell whether a product is safe or not just by looking at the label. Most vitamins, minerals, fish oil, and other supplements containing nutrients are probably just fine, but supplements are not evaluated or approved by FDA before they are sold. Although it is rare for vitamins or minerals to be contaminated with drugs, there has been at least one case of a vitamin containing an anabolic steroid.

At the other extreme are products that contain drugs, stimulants, anabolic steroids, or other hormones. Even though these are not technically dietary supplements, many of them are labeled as supplements. For example, body-building products sometimes contain anabolic steroids or Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators, known as SARMs, or other hormones. Some pre-workout or energy products contain illegal stimulants like DMAA, ephedra, or other amphetamine-like stimulants. Weight loss products might contain prescription drugs like sibutramine, or hormones, like human chorionic gonadotropin, also known as hCG. All natural or herbal sexual enhancement products might contain hormones or Viagra-like drugs. Products like these can harm your health and career, but they’re for sale online, in some nutrition stores, and they’re labeled as dietary supplements.

When you pick up a supplement, especially one that promises performance enhancement, you don’t know if it belongs in the “Mostly O.K.” pile or in the “Dangerous” pile. After all, two products might look the same, but one might contain just amino acids and other legitimate ingredients, while the other also contains anabolic steroids. Because of this, FDA has issued a warning about certain categories of supplements: body building products, weight loss products, and sexual enhancement products. Be extremely careful when considering a supplement in one of these categories. We strongly recommend that you avoid products in these categories.

Even when FDA tests supplements and finds dangerous ingredients, companies sometimes refuse to recall them. Sometimes, they simply repackage their product and continue selling it under a new name. Just because a product is on a store shelf doesn’t mean it is safe. You need to do your research and be an informed consumer. The dietary supplement industry is enormous. Supplements that appear to be safe could actually be dangerous products in disguise. If you use dietary supplements without doing your research, you may be taking serious risks with your health and your career. Please visit USADA’s Supplement 411 for more information about dietary supplements.