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American wrestler Jordan Burroughs and WNBA star Kahleah Copper are the United States Sports Academy’s Athletes of the Month after online voters worldwide recognized their achievements on the world stage in the month of October. Burroughs won his fifth world title after defeating Iran’s Mohammad Ashghar Nokhodilarimi for gold in the 79 kg weight class at the World Wrestling Championships in Oslo, Norway, on 4 October 2021. Burroughs joined John Smith – who won two Olympic titles and four world titles – as the most successful wrestlers in U.S. history. The Chicago Sky guard, Copper averaged 18.6 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 2 assists in the postseason and earned WNBA Finals MVP honors after scoring 21, 15, 22, and 10 points in the championship series sweep for the Sky against the [...]

The Academy congratulates the following graduates who completed their degrees this month. Because of the Academy’s rolling enrollments and flexible online learning options, degrees can be conferred upon graduates throughout the academic year. Master’s Graduate Fritz W. Stoppelbein (Navarre, Fla.) – M.S.S. Sports Coaching Bachelor’s Graduates Leslie A. Campbell (Springfield, Ohio) – B.S.S. Sports Strength and Conditioning Matt S. Foster (East Troy, Wisc.) – B.S.S. Sports Studies Patricia A. Maldonado (Fayetteville, N.C.) – B.S.S. Sports Studies

The United States Sports Academy is committed to broadening educational opportunities and strengthening knowledge of sport around the world, and that’s why it recently donated nine boxes of textbooks to the Philippine Sports Institute in Manila. The textbooks cover a wide range of sport education topics including sports coaching, law for recreation and sports management, sport technology, sports marketing, coaching philosophy, social media, sport nutrition, ethics, and more. The Academy has a long history in the Republic of the Philippines, having delivered certification programs there in the early 1980s. The Academy is also working with its education partners in the Philippines on ways to deliver additional post-secondary, non-degree, sport education programs there. Founded 50 years ago, the Academy has delivered quality sport education and service programs in 67 countries around [...]

American sprinter Fred Kerley and British tennis player Emma Raducanu are the United States Sports Academy’s Athletes of the Month after their achievements on the world stage in the month of September. Kerley became the first man to win Diamond League 100, 200, and 400 races after posting a time of 9.94 in the 100 meters on 3 September 2021. Kerley held off American compatriots Trayvon Bromell and Michael Norman in the race. Raducanu became the first-ever qualifier to win a tennis Grand Slam title after she defeated Canada’s Leylah Fernandez 6-4, 6-3 at the U.S. Open in New York on 11 September 2021. Raducanu is the first British woman to win a Grand Slam singles title since Virginia Wade in 1977. The second place finisher on the men’s side [...]

The Academy congratulates the following graduates who completed their degrees this month. Because of the Academy’s rolling enrollments and flexible online learning options, degrees can be conferred upon graduates throughout the academic year. Doctoral Graduates Dr. James J. Moore (Hillsboro, Kan.) – Ed.D. Sports Management, Sports Leadership specialization, with honors Dr. John T. Pagliasotti III (Weatherford, Okla.) – Ed.D. Sports Management, Sports Theory emphasis, Sports Leadership specialization, with honors Dr. Lorenzo Guess (East Lansing, Mich.) – Ed.D. Sports Management, Sports Leadership specialization

The United States Sports Academy is mourning the loss of Dr. Robert Block, the Founding Chairman of the Academy’s Board of Trustees, who passed away from natural causes on 12 October 2021 at age 93. Block played a crucial role in the founding and growth of the Academy and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the institution in 1982. In addition to being the Founding Chairman of Academy’s Board of Trustees, Block served on the board for 44 years, beginning with the Academy’s inception in 1972.  Block provided space for the Academy’s first location in Milwaukee, Wisc. Together with Founding President Dr. Thomas P. Rosandich and other founding members of the board, Block also helped recruit and select the Academy’s first National Faculty.   Block was also instrumental in the creation [...]

The United States Sports Academy recently signed a contract with the Fairhope (Ala.) Soccer Club (FSC) to sponsor that league's recreational youth and travel soccer teams. The agreement between the Daphne, Ala., based university and the local soccer organization will benefit hundreds of young athletes in Coastal Alabama. The Academy welcomed FSC president Haden Giddings, club director Declan McSheffrey, and secretary Jacque Boyer to campus for the official signing ceremony in September 2021. The FSC offers a variety of recreational programs for children ages 4-19 and offers an academy style travel program for advanced players seeking a higher level of training and competition. The club also offers camps, tournaments, and playdates throughout the year.

A well-respected law professor specializing in the investigation of corruption in sport, Richard McLaren has been named the recipient of the United States Sports Academy’s 2021 international Honorary Doctorate. Each year as part of its Awards of Sport program, the Academy presents its Honorary Doctorate to a person who has made outstanding contributions to sport and to society. McLaren earned the award because of his body of work uncovering corruption in international sport – including his leadership on the WADA Commission, which investigated allegations of state-sponsored doping in Russian sports. His 2016 McLaren Report indicated systematic state-sponsored subversion of the drug testing processes by the government of Russia before, during, and subsequent to the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics. McLaren’s follow up report, also in 2016, found that between 2011 and [...]