The 39th Annual L.A. Watts Summer Games Brings California Communities Together With Help From Hip-Hop Artists, Celebrities, Local Dignitaries

The 39th Annual L.A. Watts Summer Games Brings California Communities Together With Help From Hip-Hop Artists, Celebrities, Local Dignitaries

LOS ANGELES, June 8 /PRNewswire/ -- The 39th Annual L.A. Watts Summer Games (LAWSG), an interscholastic athletic competition that promotes positive interaction, respect and achievement among high school youth, commences this Saturday for two full weekends of healthy competition among more than 7,000 California high school athletes.

This year, the LAWSG will kick off with its first-ever opening ceremony featuring rising hip-hop star Ak'sent, Tony award-winner Tonya Pinkins and local dignitaries, following a brand-new 5K Run/Walk on Sunday, June 11 at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. The tournament will wrap up on Sunday, June 18 at the Home Depot Center with closing ceremonies featuring Lynsey Bartilson from Grounded for Life, Ricky Ullman from Phil of the Future, hip-hop artist Jeannie Ortega and an action-packed stunt show. The all-new opening and closing ceremonies, along with the 5K Run/Walk and other family-fun activities, have been added to the 2006 Games as part of a new initiative to offer more family- and community-oriented activities.

"As the Games' mission moves forward in its 39th year of helping to build bridges of understanding among California high schoolers, it seemed logical that the next step would be to provide additional activities for family members of the athletes and the community," said Michael J. Donovan III, chairman of the L.A. Watts Summer Games. "In addition to the great sportsmanship and challenging competition sure to be on display by some of the state's most promising athletes, the excitement surrounding the opening and closing ceremonies will ensure this year's Games are the best ones yet."

During the Games' weekends of June 10-11 and June 17-18, nearly 400 teams will compete in the following 16 sports at various locations around greater Los Angeles:

Girls Basketball Boys Basketball Cheerleading Baseball
Girls Tennis Boys Tennis Girls Water Polo Boys Water Polo
Girls Soccer Boys Soccer Girls Volleyball Boys Volleyball
Track & Field Softball Football Wrestling

For a complete schedule of the 39th Annual LAWSG, including event dates, times and participating teams, and information about the opening/closing ceremonies, 5K and other community events, visit www.lajcc.org/lawsg.

About LAWSG

The inaugural L.A. Watts Summer Games were held at Locke High School in 1968 as a response to the 1965 Watts Riots. The program was conceived in the belief that through better understanding and communication with each other, the youth of Los Angeles could hold the key to a society less burdened with racial tension. Since 1968, the tournament has grown from 150 students to more than 7,000 in recent years. The LAWSG now is the largest high school athletic competition in the nation. Distinguished former LAWSG participants include Florence Griffith Joyner, Lisa Leslie, John Elway, Bill Lambier and many more. To date, nearly 200,000 California youths have competed in the LAWSG.

The LAWSG is a program of the Los Angeles Junior Chamber of Commerce. This year's games are sponsored by Ralphs Food 4 Less Foundation, Chevrolet, Warehouse Shoe Sale, UPS, The Home Depot, Disney, Fire Mountain Beverage Co. and The County of Los Angeles. For more information, visit www.lajcc.org/lawsg.

Source: Los Angeles Junior Chamber of Commerce

CONTACT: Ramona Vargas, Program Manager, +1-213-989-2154,
rvargas@lajcc.org, or Marissa Lott, Community Relations Chair,
+1-323-640-9764, marissalott@comcast.net, both for Los Angeles Junior Chamber
of Commerce

Web site: http://www.lajcc.org/lawsg

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