New Round of LA84 Grants Support Array of Youth Sports Programs

Ranging From Running and Rowing to Basketball and Boxing

A total of $771,758 will go to 30 athletic programs serving 24,000 children in Southern California from the LA84 Foundation, the ongoing legacy of LA’s 1984 Olympic Games

The LA84 Foundation today announced grants that will help provide highly-needed facilities, staff and equipment for a wide array of youth sports programs across Southern California, including cycling, running, soccer, martial arts, swimming, and rowing, among others. A total of $771,758 is being awarded to 30 organizations to support programs that together reach 24,000 children, including youth with disabilities.

With the grants announced today, the LA84 Foundation is on course to award over $4.5 million in 2015, making it the leading financial supporter of youth sports in Southern California.

The latest round of grants will support a wide range of projects, including a new sports court floor in the Boys & Girls Club of Huntington Valley’s gymnasium; new rowing shells for the Lake Casitas Rowing Association; golf instruction and equipment for the Southern California Golf Association Foundation’s Youth on Course Junior Golf program; the completion of the Yucaipa BMX Sports Complex to support Strada Corsa, Inc.’s youth cycling program; boxing instructors and equipment for the Any Body Can Youth Resorts Foundation; an equestrian program for special needs youth at Carousel Ranch; Inc.; and marathon training programs at the Santa Clarita Track Club Inc., among others.

The largest grant was awarded to Mt. San Antonio Community College District to support instructional clinics and school-based track meets at elementary and middle schools throughout the region, which includes Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, and Riverside Counties. LA84’s award of $85,000 will reach approximately 6,000 youth across counties.

"Thousands of children are still reaping the rewards of the 1984 Olympic Games hosted in Los Angeles more than three decades ago," said Anita L. DeFrantz, President of the LA84 Foundation and Executive Member of the International Olympic Committee. "We are grateful for the positive affect LA84 and our donors are able to have on the lives of youth by providing opportunities to develop life skills through sport, regardless of ability or status."

Originally endowed with $93 million of the surplus funds from the 1984 Olympic Games, the LA84 Foundation has built a strong reputation as the leading regional supporter of youth sports programs through its renowned grantmaking, research, and coaching education programs. Over the past 30 years, LA84 has invested more than $225 million back into communities across Southern California.

For a full list of this round’s grant recipients and award amounts, as well as more information about the LA84 grant application process, please visit www.la84.org/grantmaking.

About the LA84 Foundation

The LA84 Foundation was established to manage Southern California’s share of the surplus from the successful 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. The Foundation received an endowment of $93 million. Since it began operations in 1985, it has invested $225 million back into the communities that supported the Games, supporting more than 3 million youth in the eight Southern California counties of Los Angeles, Imperial, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara and Ventura. Its headquarters is the historic Britt House near downtown Los Angeles where it houses the world’s premier sports library and meeting facilities. The Foundation provides grants to youth sports organizations, manages programs, including a coaching education program, and convenes numerous forums for the exploration of the most pressing issues in sport. For more information, please visit www.la84.org.

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