For Immediate Release
For further information contact
Kenny White, Technical Director
Mississippi Fire Soccer Club
601.624.3766- cell
kwsocman@aol.com
STEPHEN ROBERSON OF MADISON SELECTED TO REGION III OLYMPIC DEVELOPMENT TEAM FOR INTERNATIONAL SOCCER FESTIVAL IN BARCELONA, SPAIN.
Madison, Mississippi (January 25, 2008)
Stephen Roberson, 15 of Madison, Mississippi has been named to the Region III Olympic Development Team that will be traveling to the International Soccer Festival in Barcelona Spain February 23- March 2, 2008. Roberson is also a member of the Mississippi Fire Under -15 Division I team and a member of the Madison Central High School Soccer Team.
In order to be named to a regional team, players must first be selected for their State ODP Team and then attend ODP camp where coaches evaluate players on technique, tactics, fitness and athletic ability and psychological component (attitude). At camp, Roberson was named to the Region III pool and then selected to represent Region III at the Thanksgiving Inter-Regional event in Orlando Florida over Thanksgiving. Based on his performance, he was selected to the 2007 Adidas All-Star ODP team. Roberson has now been named to the Region III team that will compete in Barcelona. Teams from all four regions will be competing in Barcelona with competition against the top youth programs in Spain including FC Barcelona, Espanyol, Cornella,
Region III is comprised of 11 states including Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee. Players on teams from these states all compete for a spot on the regional team during regional ODP camp held each summer. The US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program (ODP) was formed in 1977 to identify a pool of players from which a U.S. National Team would be selected for international competition.
US Youth Soccer - The Game for ALL Kids!® is the largest youth sports organization in the country and largest member of the United States Soccer Federation, the governing body of soccer in the United States. US Youth Soccer registers more than 3.2 million players annually, ages 5 to 19, and over 900,000 administrators, coaches and volunteers in 55 member state associations. US Youth Soccer programs provide a fun, safe and healthy environment for players at every level of the game. For more information, visit www.USYouthSoccer.org.