The William E. Simon Olympic Endowment for the Support of Athletes Awarded to 25 Olympic and Paralympic Hopefuls

For Immediate Release February 11, 2008 The William E. Simon Olympic Endowment for the Support of Athletes Awarded to 25 Olympic and Paralympic Hopefuls COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.-The United States Olympic Committee announced today the awardees of The William E. Simon Olympic Endowment for the Support of Athletes. Trustees for The William E. Simon Olympic Endowment for the Support of Athletes have awarded a total of $123,500 in grants to 25 men and women pursuing their dreams of representing the United States at the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Established in 1998 with a gift of $1 million from its namesake, The William E. Simon Olympic Endowment for the Support of Athletes provides additional funds to athletes demonstrating great financial hardship with limited or no outside support. These grants will help athletes pay for training and competition expenses that could otherwise force them to abandon their pursuit of athletic excellence. Since the program's inception, Trustees for the Simon Endowment have awarded nearly $440,000 to 79 athletes. The 2008 recipients are: Erin Alberda, Equestrian (Paralympic hopeful - Woodinville, WA) Randall Bal, Swimming (Olympic hopeful - Fair Oaks, CA) Caitlin Chasar, Swimming (Paralympic hopeful - North Wales, PA) Patrick Choi, Speedskating (Olympic hopeful - North Potomac, MD) Jermaine Cooper, Track and Field (Olympic hopeful - Austin, TX) David Cromwell, Swimming (Olympic hopeful - Austin, TX) Kevin Davis, Track and Field (Olympic hopeful - Kensington, CA) Kimani Griffin, Speedskating (Olympic hopeful - Winston-Salem, NC) Keri Hehn, Swimming (Olympic hopeful - Los Angeles, CA) Bridgette Ingram, Track and Field (Olympic hopeful - Maplewood, NJ) Megan Kalmoe, Rowing (Olympic hopeful - Princeton, NJ) Mark LeBlanc, Sailing (Paralympic hopeful - New Orleans, LA) Yvette Lewis, Track and Field, (Olympic hopeful - Newport News, VA) Brendon Mahoney, Track and Field (Olympic hopeful - Marietta, GA) John Napier, Bobsled (Olympic hopeful - Lake Placid, NY) Lindsay Payne, Swimming (Olympic hopeful - Los Angeles, CA) Shaun Phillips, Swimming (Olympic hopeful - Stanford, CA) James Rodowsky, Speedskating (Olympic hopeful - Annapolis, MD) Daniel Satinsky, Judo (Olympic hopeful - Buffalo Grove, IL) Cortney Stafford, Track and Field (Olympic hopeful - Paso Robles, CA) Elizabeth Tinnon, Swimming (Olympic hopeful - Austin, TX) Thuc Tran, Judo (Olympic hopeful - Springfield, VA) Bryon Wilson, Skiing (Olympic hopeful - Taylorsville, UT) Marni Yamada, Snowboarding (Olympic hopeful - Shoreline, WA) Greg Zuerlein, Figure Skating (Olympic hopeful - Northville, MI) Spanning nearly four decades, William Simon did much to further the goals and ideals of the Olympic Movement in the United States until his death in 2000. He held several titles during his tenure with the USOC including Treasurer in 1977 and President from 1981 - 85. Simon was inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 1991 and received the Silver Award of the Olympic Order from the International Olympic Committee. In addition to his many successes in private business, Simon was appointed as the 63rd secretary of the U.S. Treasury in 1974. Grants from the Olympic Endowment are awarded annually. Applications for the 2008-2009 grant year will be available from sport National Governing Bodies in June 2008. Athlete applications will be accepted through September 2008, with the Trustees announcing the new grant recipients in early 2009. For more information, please contact the USOC Communications Division at 719-866-4529.