SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - USA Archery announced our 2016 Coach of the Year Award recipients at last weekend's Coach Symposium. We are proud to be able to recognize the efforts of some of our most dedicated and innovative coaches. In addition to USA Archery recognition, the winners of each category will also be nominated for the U.S. Olympic Committee's Coach of the Year Awards.
Paralympic Champion Jeff Fabry (Leemore, California) was awarded the Volunteer Coach of the Year Award. A Volunteer Coach of the Year is a coach who does not receive payment in any form for their involvement in coaching.
Coach Fabry works with the military community and teaches archery to anyone who wants to learn. He teaches a weekly class for visually impaired archers and runs several weekly classes for veterans. Several archers who began in the sport through Coach Fabry have said that he gives them the will and a reason to get out into the community and work on a new goal. Fabry has also worked with the Warrior Games, the Valor Games and many Paralympic Sport Camps. He was also part of Team USA's 2016 Team for Tomorrow Ambassador Program.
Roxanne Reimann-Ryea (Lebanon, Connecticut) was voted the winner of the National Coach of the Year Award. A National Coach of the Year nominee is a coach of an Elite Level Club, Collegiate, Pan-Am, World Championship or Olympic Games coach or the coach of an elite athlete who competes at the highest level of your sport. This award is based on the accomplishments of the coach for the year 2016.
Coach Reimann-Ryea's club shares that she brings passion and enjoyment to her coaching. When it comes to advancing archery, she is constantly looking for quality kids, not just the best archers that she can bring up to the next level. Not every archer will be elite, but Reimann-Ryea has a way to bring every student to their own personal elite and then push them farther yet again.
Level 3-NTS Coach Greg Semaan (Shorewood, Illinois) was awarded Developmental Coach of the Year. A Developmental Coach of the Year nominee is a coach of a youth club, high school or junior-level coach, or a coach directly responsible for coaching athletes to the junior and/or elite level.
Coach Semaan works with over 120 archery students between his JOAD club and a local high school program. His archers have made podiums in many local and state events, and several of his archers have achieved national recognition. One of his archer's parent shared: "Greg is over deserving of this award. He selflessly gives of his time. Is always available for his archers whenever they have questions and has given of his private time to work with an archer who is either preparing for a big shoot or just because they are trying to overcome an obstacle. He loves this sport so much and it shows."
Level 5-NTS Coach Derek Davis (Bronx, New York) was once again named the winner of the "Doc" Counsilman Science Award. This award is for a coach that utilizes scientific techniques and equipment as an integral part of his/her coaching methods, or has created innovative ways to use sport science which includes biomechanics, nutrition, psychology, technology, strength and conditioning and exercise physiology.
Coach Davis uses many innovative technologies in his coaching for both his JOAD and Collegiate archery teams. From the use of GoPro cameras, to high-speed cameras for form analysis and brain wave analysis tools, Coach Davis helps his students analyze both their form, equipment performance, and looks scientifically and mathematically at the target to help archers understand how each of their shots are affected by different factors. His methods have proven to be quite effective as archers on both of his teams have won many national honors in the classroom and on the archery field.
USA Archery thanks all our hard-working coaches who dedicate so much time and effort to growing our sport and helping our archers reach their goals. None of what we do as an organization would be possible without the support of our coaches. USA Archery sincerely shares our congratulations to each of our Coach of the Year Award winners. For more information on USA Archery's instructor and coach program opportunities please visit www.usarchery.org.
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