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Taos Rush’ Kicks Off at Taos Eco Park
TAOS, New Mexico — March 6, 2012
After months of discussion with Taos Sports Alliance and Town of Taos, Rush Soccer has announced its new partner club Taos Rush will be training, playing games and hosting tournaments, camps and coaching clinics at Taos Eco Park, the FIFA 2 Star Certified Field in Taos, New Mexico.
Rush Soccer is recognized internationally as the largest youth soccer club in the world with over 34,000 youth soccer players.
“I am proud to be part of this step in bringing Rush Soccer to Taos,” said Jerome de Bontin, Chairman of Rush Soccer, who is credited as being the catalyst for Taos Rush. “I have been a part of this community for some time now and I am always eager to contribute where I can especially in the development of our youth. Soccer is a healthy life style and connecting Rush to help the children of this community is natural fit.”
Rush Soccer already has a presence in Albuquerque with NM Rush and according to the Licensing Services Agreement, can only operate one franchise per state unless the existing club grants permission to allow operations for another Rush Club. Working in conjunction with NM Rush’s President Greg Heileman and Technical Director Justin Sells, Rush Soccer granted a partner club status to Taos Rush to operate within its own territory in northern New Mexico.
“The Taos soccer community hopes to contribute back to Rush Soccer as much as we believe we will receive through this affiliation,” said Justin Lea, President of Taos Rush.
In January 2012, Taos Eco Park’s synthetic field manufactured by Shaw Sportexe, earned its recertification as a FIFA 2 Star Field – one of only four of its kind in the United States. Taos Eco Park also gained international attention in 2011, after receiving two awards from American Sports Builders Association (ASBA) for top “Green Facility” and “Single Field Facility.”
“We look forward to sharing Taos with the Rush Soccer family,” says Joel Israel, Executive Director of Taos Sports Alliance. “Taos Eco Park was built to host high altitude training camps and tournaments, so we were looking for a premier soccer club to compliment the long range vision of building Taos as a world class training grounds. Rush Soccer is a perfect fit for Taos with its reputation as a world class soccer club.”
In only 10 months since its opening, the Eco Park has already played host to recreational and competitive youth clubs, NCAA Men’s and Women’s teams, as well as the Rwanda U17 National Team Training Camp prior to their Group Stage at the FIFA World Cup Finals in Mexico.
The Eco Park is in the process of constructing a second field this year, along with a third and final field set to be constructed by 2013/2014. The Town of Taos, Taos Municipal Schools, Taos Sports Alliance, State of New Mexico and Shaw Sportexe, will celebrate the Eco Park’s first Anniversary with numerous Men’s and Women’s NCAA soccer matches, boys and girls youth club teams and celebratory activities on Saturday, April 14 and Saturday, April 21.
Taos Eco Park is fully sustainable in irrigation and power supply, with a 75kw low voltage solar array that went online in February, 2012 which produces far more power to the electric grid than it will ever consume. The park also offers: sports lighting system by Musco for evening play, a storage and restroom building, a one-third mile walking/jogging track, and bleachers with a 500 person capacity.