Goodyear awards medals to three for support of Olympic athletes

Three medal winners of the Goodyear "Get there" Award have been named for their assistance in helping American athletes achieve their dream of competing on the world's greatest stage in China.

Sponsored by the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, the recognition program highlights the often little-known stories of those people who work tirelessly behind the scenes to help America's athletes achieve their goals, Goodyear reports.

The three winners are James Ravannack, Metairie, La., for his support of wrestler Daniel Cormier; coach Brian Barker, Monroe, Conn., for his support of tennis player James Blake; and Jim Pedro, Salem, N.H., for his support of judo player Ronda Rousey.

Goodyear's selection panel included Olympic decathlon gold medalist and three-time World Champion Dan O'Brien. The three medal award winners were selected from amongst 28 individual honorees representing each major sport discipline and recognized for their extraordinary efforts to help the athletes excel.

"Having faced adversity in life and in sport, I know firsthand how important family, coaches and mentors can be to an athlete trying to become the best in the world," says O'Brien, the 1996 Olympic gold medalist. "Each of the 28 individuals being recognized with the Goodyear 'Get there' Award has proved to today's athletes what I learned when I was competing: that the support of people like them can uplift athletes and help them achieve their goals in even the most stressful times."

"Goodyear is committed to developing best-in-class innovations and breakthrough technologies that help consumers reach their destinations ... or 'Get there,'" says Joey Viselli, director of the Goodyear Brand. "What better embodiment of that philosophy than to honor those unsung heroes that have helped American athletes 'Get there' to the ultimate athletic stage."

The three medal winners, selected by a Goodyear panel spearheaded by O'Brien, will be presented with the special Goodyear 'Get there' Award.

James Ravannack
Coach Ravannack is like a second dad to Cormier, whose father was murdered when he was 7. Growing up in a tough neighborhood in northeast Lafayette, La., Cormier showed great promise by the time he entered high school, and that is when Ravannack, a successful businessman and leader within international wrestling, took him in. With the help of Ravannack, Cormier would become a three-time state champion, a two-time junior college All- American Wrestler and a medalist at the Cadet World Championships.

Over these years, Ravannack helped keep Cormier moving in the right direction, bringing him home to New Orleans each summer to continue training. Ravannack saw Cormier through the deaths of a high school teammate, a college friend and a cousin, and got him a tryout at Oklahoma State, allowing Daniel to transfer from Colby (Kan.) Community College.

Ravannack helped Cormier battle back from a broken arm that kept him out of the 2000 Olympic Games, but just as he was peaking in training for the 2004 Olympic Games, tragedy struck again: his infant daughter, Kaedyn, died in a car accident. When Cormier revealed the baby didn't have a headstone, Ravannack and his wife purchased one. Trials for the 2004 Olympic team were scheduled the same week the grieving parents buried their baby, but thanks to Ravannack and USA Wrestling, a special wrestle-off was scheduled, and Cormier made the team.

But grief still weighed heavily, and with support from Ravannack and USA Wrestling, Cormier saw a sports psychologist, who helped him channel his emotion. His focus and training improved, and he is once again heading to the Olympic Games as the only member of the U.S. freestyle team to earn a second trip to the Games.

Brian Barker
Barker has been Blake's coach for 18 years and is one of his closest friends and supporters. Blake attributes much of his career success to the training and professional support he gets from Barker, and it is the support and friendship he receives off the court that has helped him through some of the most difficult trials of his life, including breaking his neck while training in Rome, losing his father to cancer, suffering from zoster and recovering from it all to return to the pro tour and qualify for Beijing.

While it is almost unheard of for a professional tennis player to have had the same coach since the age of 11, Blake says he never even considered dropping Barker as he rose to become one of the best players in tennis. Blake attributes his loyalty to Barker to his coach's deep understanding of him as a person, his terrific understanding of the game, and his willingness to time and again go beyond the typical role of a coach to support him as a friend and mentor.

Jim Pedro
Rousey, a Californian, is favored to become the first American to win Olympic gold in Judo this summer, largely due to the dedication of her coach, or sensei, Pedro.

Pedro, a native of Wakefield, Mass., was a U.S. World Team coach and was inducted into the Black Belt Hall of Fame as Instructor of the Year in 1978. He has spent the last five years training Rousey without compensation, traveling the world extensively as her coach at his own expense and even inviting the athlete to live in his family home during the months of intensive work that led to the Athens Olympics Games. He insists that all athletes who train with him finish high school or college, and most of them also volunteer or get jobs in the community.

"Our panel found it difficult to select just three winners from among the stories we read, as each individual showed an outstanding commitment to helping America's aspiring athletes 'Get there,'" adds Viselli. "In addition to honoring the three winners, Goodyear is thanking all 28 honorees for their dedication and outstanding support by helping them 'Get there' with an award of a free set of top-of-the-line Goodyear icon technology tires."

The 25 other Goodyear 'Get there' Award honorees include:

• Coach Alexander Kirillov from Tucson, Ariz., for his support of Archer Jennifer Nichols.

• Sharon Richards from Round Rock, Texas, for her support of her daughter, 400m runner Sanya Richards.

• Don Chew, Orange, Calif., for his support of all five Badminton athletes.

• Terri Marzano of Philadelphia, on behalf of her late husband John Marzano, for his inspiration and support of baseball pitcher Mike Koplove.

• Arittio Fowles of Miami for her support of her daughter, basketball player Sylvia Fowles.

• Gary Russell Sr. of Washington, D.C., for his support of his son, boxer Gary Russell Jr.

• Coach Chris Barlow of San Diego for his support of many of today's canoe/kayak athletes.

• Davis Phinney of Boulder, Colo., for his support of his son, former Olympic medalist and Tour de France stage winner Taylor Phinney.

• Former Olympian Sharon Rittenhouse from Santa Cruz, Calif., for her support of Diver Ariel Rittenhouse.

• Dr. Brendan Furlong of Oldwick, N.J., for his support of the equestrian team athletes, both human and equine.

• Former Olympian Kathy Zagunis from Beaverton, Ore., for her support of daughter Mariel and the women's sabre fencing team.

• Coach Liang Qiao Chow of Des Moines, Iowa, for his support of gymnast Shawn Johnson.

• Dr. David Higgins of Olney, Md., for his support of the field hockey team.

• Ben Sacksen of Somerset, Pa., for his support of modern pentathete Sam Sacksen.

• David and Denise Mickelson of Bellevue, Wash., for their support of their daughter, rower Anna (Mickelson) Cummins.

• Head coach Gary Bodie of Hampton, Va., for his support of the sailing team.

• Arnold Tarzy of Potomac, Md., for his support of soccer star Freddy Adu.

• Craig Hancock of Eatonton, Ga., for his support of his son, skeet shooter Vincent Hancock,

• Head coach Mike Candrea of Oklahoma City for his support of the women's softball team.

• Debbie Phelps of Towson, Md., for her support of Olympic medalist Michael Phelps.

• Jerry Wartski of New York City for his support of table tennis athlete Wang Chen.

• Coach Jimmy Kim of Laguna Niguel, Calif., for his support of tae kwon do athlete Charlotte Craig.

• Ann Boudrot of Billerica, Mass., for her support of triathlete Jarrod Shoemaker.

• Arnie Ball of Woodburn, Ind., for his support of his son, volleyball player Lloy Ball.

• Kyle Pierce of Shreveport, La., for his support of weightlifter Kendrick Farris.

For more information about Goodyear, go to www.goodyeartires.com.