Monday MLS Breakdown: Extended Development Academy season prompts concerns about its participants
Posted: February 14, 2012 at 1:01 am
or all intents and purposes, U.S. Soccer tipped its hand on its plans for the Development Academy last year when it extended the season from seven to 10 months for a selected number of clubs.
This trial run might have resembled a test drive, but it would only produce one outcome. Forget about mitigating circumstances or tweaks along the way. The revised model would trump any proffered alternatives and sweep through the Development Academy sooner or later.
The inevitable unveiling arrived on Friday afternoon as U.S. Soccer – complete with plenty of supporting documentation – announced it would enact a 10-month schedule for the 2012-13 season and prohibit all Academy players from taking part in high school athletics.
“If we want our players to someday compete against the best in the world, it is critical for their development that they train and play as much as possible and in the right environment,” U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann said in a press release issued by the federation. “The Development Academy 10-month season is the right formula and provides a good balance between training time and playing competitive matches. This is the model that the best countries around the world use for their programs and I think it makes perfect sense that we do, as well.”
Borrowing this European-style structure represents the next step in the process as federation officials attempt to establish and refine a uniform way to mine and polish raw talent.
Extending the Development Academy season represents an important step forward toward that particular objective. Players will benefit from more frequent instruction in a carefully controlled setting. Games remain critical learning tools, but training sessions serve as the primary method of skill development. No wonder then that the revised schedule will dramatically increase the time players can spend on the practice field and permit coaches to construct overarching ways to impart necessary tactical and technical knowledge.
Instead of watching their players try to recover lost time in both departments in the early stages of their professional careers, U.S. Soccer officials hope this shift will allow American prospects to compete with European and South American starlets.
“This schedule puts our elite players in line with kids in their age group internationally and places the appropriate physical demands on them at this stage in their development,” U.S. Soccer youth technical director Claudio Reyna said in a release. “The addition of as many as 50 extra training sessions per year will greatly enhance the ability of players to work on individual skills and receive advice and instruction from coaches. Along with the support of our membership, this move has been greeted with enthusiasm from soccer experts from around the world.”
MLS coaches and executives will likely concur in the long-term. This shift continues the gradual transition from profit-seeking organizations squeezing every last cent out of youth soccer to professional setups designed to develop players over the long term (and, in some instances, make some money along the way). The presence of MLS academy sides within the Development Academy structure even provides a modicum of control and supervision over the process. In time, each MLS club will possess the capability to mold and shape players in accordance with first-team needs and philosophical guidelines.
Every measure employed by the clubs and the federation shows the Development Academy program offers a level of training that far exceeds what existed in this country a decade ago. The philosophies are wiser and the structures are stronger than they once were. Room for growth remains, but these determined steps create a path worth following in some instances.
There is, however, still the open question of whether too many kids will sprint down that road without fully understanding the social education they will give up to do so.
The adults constructing these plans seem to willingly discount the significant life sacrifices ahead for the affected teenagers. No more high school soccer. No more high school sports of any kind. No more pressure-filled situations with their teammates. No more civic angst or pride at the outcome of matches. No more letter jackets. No more spaghetti dinners. Fewer nights to enjoy life as a teenager without contemplating the responsibilities of an apprentice advancing toward the professional level.
(Note: This issue has little to do with the quality of play in high school soccer. That particular brand of the game usually doesn't offer much to the Development Academy player in terms of tactical and technical development. In fact, high school soccer may even hamper that growth, unless kicking it to the corner suddenly makes a dramatic comeback at the highest levels. Regardless of the approach of high school coaches, the concern here is that the social aspects of participating on high school teams [or in any other high school activity, for that matter] are now pushed to the side without any form of comparable replacement.)
Academy kids must now decide to eschew the traditional high school experience to pursue a distant and difficult dream. The system is now overtly designed to cultivate the most promising prospects without catering to the fundamental needs of the vast majority of players that will never make the grade.
Sheer numbers prohibit a raft of success stories. Seventy-eight clubs participate in the Development Academy. Each club (barring any exceptions) fields a U-16 side and a U-18 side. If each team (conservatively) names 18 players to each roster during a season, then 2,808 players will feature at some point during any given Academy season. Only a modest percentage of those players will warrant a Division I scholarship by the end of their Academy careers. Barely a handful will play professional soccer. A miniscule number will appear with a national team of any sort.
(Note: The validity of these social complaints would dwindle significantly if U.S. Soccer pared down the number of clubs in the Development Academy. It's hard to envision how this accommodating structure offers a uniform level of development across clubs with varying levels of resources. A leaner model would cull some of the weaker clubs, reduce the number of players affected and likely strengthen the level of competition. Every player should participate at minimal or no cost as well, but that contention sparks a philosophical discussion too lengthy for this space.)
In its quest to mimic European developmental models, U.S. Soccer discounted the importance of crucial social development structures relied upon by American teenagers. Some potential stars and their parents won't stand for it. They will suspect the concessions demanded in exchange – the crowded schedules, the travel demands and those lost high school experiences – for Academy participation are too great for a teenager to make, especially with college and its alternative path toward the same goal looming in a few short years.
It's tough to blame them. For all of the benefits the extended Development Academy will bring for players on the field, it will force them to shoulder many burdens off of it. In the end, U.S. Soccer must hope the success of the structure outweighs the social impact felt by the scores of players that fail to reach its intended goal. Otherwise, the cost could prove too great for all parties to bear.
Kyle McCarthy writes the Monday MLS Breakdown and frequently writes opinion pieces during the week for Goal.com. He also covers the New England Revolution for the Boston Herald and MLSsoccer.com. Contact him with your questions or comments at kyle.mccarthy@goal.com and follow him on Twitter by clicking here.
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Monday MLS Breakdown: Extended Development Academy season prompts concerns about its participants
Air Products Acquires ROVI Cosmetics
Posted: at 1:01 am
LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa., Feb. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Air Products (NYSE:APD - News) today announced it has acquired Schluchtern, Germany-based ROVI Cosmetics International GmbH, an established leader in the development of cosmetic actives and delivery systems for the European personal care industry. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
ROVI Cosmetics has 18 employees and provides targeted and differentiated delivery systems that enable personal care formulators' performance and label claims in their finished skin care and hair care products.
"We are pleased to complete the acquisition of ROVI Cosmetics and continue to build our personal care portfolio," said Pam Mattimore, vice president and general manager of Performance Materials for Air Products. "This acquisition adds critical mass to our business as we develop into a differentiated specialty ingredient supplier to the personal care industry."
"We are excited about this opportunity. Air Products and ROVI present a perfect match that will facilitate the development and global sale of advanced skin care actives," said Dirk Teichmuller, president and chief executive officer of ROVI Cosmetics.
ROVI Cosmetics' technically advanced product lines will complement Air Products' current offering, which includes temperature switch polymers under the Intelimer® brand, "functional-feel" polymers under Deposilk™ brand, and Hybridur® urethane-acrylic interpenetrating network polymers.
For more information, please visit http://www.airproducts.com/personalcare.
Air Products (NYSE:APD - News) provides atmospheric, process and specialty gases; performance materials; equipment; and technology. For over 70 years, the company has enabled customers to become more productive, energy efficient and sustainable. More than 18,000 employees in over 40 countries supply innovative solutions to the energy, environment and emerging markets. These include semiconductor materials, refinery hydrogen, coal gasification, natural gas liquefaction, and advanced coatings and adhesives. In fiscal 2011, Air Products had sales of $10.1 billion. For more information, visit http://www.airproducts.com.
***NOTE: This release may contain forward-looking statements within the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on management's reasonable expectations and assumptions as of the date of this release regarding important risk factors. Actual performance and financial results may differ materially from projections and estimates expressed in the forward-looking statements because of many factors not anticipated by management, including risk factors described in the Company's Form 10K for its fiscal year ended September 30, 2011.
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McGraw-Hill Higher Education Partners with University of Nebraska-Lincoln to Develop All-Digital Economics Course with …
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McGraw-Hill Higher Education Partners with University of Nebraska-Lincoln to Develop All-Digital Economics Course with ...
MIT's Online Education Prototype Opens For Enrollment
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OldHawk777 writes with news that MITx, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's online learning initiative, has opened free enrollment for its first course: 6.002x: Circuits and Electronics. "Modeled after MIT’s 6.002 — an introductory course for undergraduate students in MIT’s Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) — 6.002x will introduce engineering in the context of the lumped circuit abstraction, helping students make the transition from physics to the fields of electrical engineering and computer science. ... 'We are very excited to begin MITx with this prototype class,' says MIT Provost L. Rafael Reif. 'We will use this prototype course to optimize the tools we have built by soliciting and acting on feedback from learners.' To access the course, registered students will log in at mitx.mit.edu, where they will find a course schedule, an e-textbook for the course, and a discussion board. Each week, students will watch video lectures and demonstrations, work with practice exercises, complete homework assignments, and participate in an online interactive lab specifically designed to replicate its real-world counterpart. Students will also take exams and be able to check their grades as they progress in the course. Overall, students can expect to spend approximately 10 hours each week on the course."
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MIT's Online Education Prototype Opens For Enrollment
Evan the Life Coach – Video
Posted: February 13, 2012 at 12:33 pm
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Life Coach Daphna Hernandez Hosts Business Networking – Video
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Volleyball-Four Korean players get life ban for match-fixing
Posted: at 12:33 pm
Four South Korean volleyball players have been banned for life for their involvement in a match-fixing scandal, local media reported on Monday.
The disciplinary committee of the Korean Volleyball Federation has banned three players from the KEPCO 45 team and another from Sangmu, a military team in the V-League. None of the quartet are allowed to take up coaching assignments either, the Yonhap news agency reported.
"To make sure professional volleyball can remain in place in the country, we had no choice but to impose severe punishments," Park Sang-seol, secretary general of the federation, was quoted as saying.
"Some have been taken into custody, and some have not. But we've looked at what prosecutors have learned so far and banned players for life."
A fifth player, who admitted his involvement in the ring while representing his previous team Sangmu, remained suspended until the prosecutors finish a probe into the scandal which has led to the exclusion of the military team for the remainder of the season.
Of the players interrogated for allegedly taking money from gambling brokers, three have been taken into custody.
South Korean soccer was thrown into a similar chaos last year due to a match-fixing scandal that led to the arrest of nearly 50 players.
It was the worst scandal to hit the 29-year-old K-League, with a former coach and player, who Korean media linked to the match-fixing ring, found dead in separate incidents after suspected suicides.
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Volleyball-Four Korean players get life ban for match-fixing
Four Korean players get life ban for match-fixing
Posted: at 12:33 pm
SEOUL (Reuters) - Four South Korean volleyball players have been banned for life for their involvement in a match-fixing scandal, local media reported on Monday.
The disciplinary committee of the Korean Volleyball Federation has banned three players from the KEPCO 45 team and another from Sangmu, a military team in the V-League. None of the quartet are allowed to take up coaching assignments either, the Yonhap news agency reported.
"To make sure professional volleyball can remain in place in the country, we had no choice but to impose severe punishments," Park Sang-seol, secretary general of the federation, was quoted as saying.
"Some have been taken into custody, and some have not. But we've looked at what prosecutors have learned so far and banned players for life."
A fifth player, who admitted his involvement in the ring while representing his previous team Sangmu, remained suspended until the prosecutors finish a probe into the scandal which has led to the exclusion of the military team for the remainder of the season.
Of the players interrogated for allegedly taking money from gambling brokers, three have been taken into custody.
South Korean soccer was thrown into a similar chaos last year due to a match-fixing scandal that led to the arrest of nearly 50 players.
It was the worst scandal to hit the 29-year-old K-League, with a former coach and player, who Korean media linked to the match-fixing ring, found dead in separate incidents after suspected suicides.
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Four Korean players get life ban for match-fixing