USL News Release
Thursday, March 1, 2012
TAMPA, Fla. – The United Soccer Leagues Super Y-League opens its 2011/12 Olympic Development Program Girls National Camp Thursday, with 185 of the top U13-U17 players in North America set to descend on IMG Academies in Bradenton, Florida.
On the heels of a highly successful boys ODP camp held this past week, the camp will run through Sunday, March 4. Participants will learn under the watchful eyes of some of the top coaches in North America who will provide instruction and evaluation under the direction of USL National Technical Director Peter Mellor, who has spent the past 18 years as a member of the U.S. National Staff and 25 years as an ODP coach.
Among the coaches participating will be University of South Alabama Head Coach Mike Varga, Troy University Head Coach Chris Bentley, former Stony Brook University, Brown University and University of Rhode Island coach Kim Dean, St. Michael’s College Head Coach Marcel Choquette, LSU Assistant Coach Brandon Gwin, former Eckerd College Head Coach Siggi Nagele, and former Greensboro College and Stony Brook University coach Doug Shank.
Players selected to attend the camp were identified as the top players in their birth year and among the top two percent of players in the Super Y-League. The ODP Program is a crucial component of the USL Super Y-League, offering the best players from the U13 to U17 age groups a chance to receive top-quality coaching and the opportunity to be scouted by U.S. National Team and college coaches.
Select teams will be identified by the coaches for the 95/96 and 97/98 age groups and announced following the conclusion of the camp.
IMG Academies is the world’s largest and most advanced multi-sport training and education complex dedicated to developing the TOTAL ATHLETE™. For more than 30 years, IMG Academies has helped countless youth, adult, collegiate and professional athletes reach their full potential in sport and life, by providing expert coaching, tailored programs and world-class facilities, across a 450-acre campus.