KATIE COURIC ROLLS WITH USA ROLLER SPORTS ON THE T

[usars]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AUGUST 8, 2002

NEW YORK CITY, NY-USA Roller Sports (USARS) in combination with NIKE and the 2002 Winter Speed Skating Medallists Rusty Smith and Joey Cheek, former USARS member, will be featured on the Today Show on Monday, August 12th. Katie Couric will test her skating skills against Cheek and Smith in a challenge to demonstrate the benefits of roller sports. The segment is scheduled for 9 a.m. on NBC.

In addition to the feature on the Today Show, USARS, Winter Speed Skating Medallists Derek Parra, Eric Flaim, Rusty Smith and Joey Cheek will be holding a free skating clinic on Saturday, August 10, from 12:00 p.m. to 2 p.m. at Wollman Rink in Central Park. This event is part of "USA Roller Sports Skate Week," presented by Nike. WNBC-TV's "Saturday Today in New York," will be promoting the event on a live feed from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

"We are very fortunate to have the opportunity to be debuted on NBC live," says Lou Marciani, Executive Director of USARS. "We have had a great response from New Yorkers and the media."

USA Roller Sports and Nike are dedicated to the advancement of roller sports as a healthy form of exercise and competition, and commends the athletes who have worked tirelessly to promote in-line skating as an international competitive sport.

USA Roller Sports is recognized by the Federation Internationale de Roller Skating (FIRS) and the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) as the National Governing Body for Competitive Roller Sports in the United States. For more information, log onto www.usarollersports.org or contact Media and Public Relations Department at (402)483.7551.

"USARS is dedicated to creating, enhancing and conducting the best competitions and programs for roller sports. We instill the drive to win and be the absolute best?in sport and in life."

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[NLane]

When my son was skating in his younger days USARS was very picky in selecting sponsors. The sponsors had to meet very strict rules. I guess their rules have changed. I really don't want inline hockey to have the "bad boy" rep that some sponsors seems to crave. Congrats to Home Depot for showing the "athlete" who really controls the show!!