Muhammad Awarded Olympic Endowment Fund Grant

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO – Sabir Muhammad has been awarded the first grant by the William E. Simon Endowment for the Support of Athletes. The $7,500 grant for the 1998 calendar year was awarded by the William E. Simon Endowment Fund’s Board of Trustees.

The grant will allow Muhammad, a recent addition to the USA Swimming Resident team, to train at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra from Oct. 22 to Dec. 10, with world champions Michael Klim and Alexander Popov, under the tutelage of Gennadi Touretski, a former USSR national team member (1964-73) and Olympic coach (1988, 1992).

“It’s a great chance for me to learn from the best, widen my horizons and extend my resources,” Muhammad said. “Michael Klim and Alexander Popov are people I have a lot of respect for. I’m looking forward to the opportunity and I’m grateful to Mr. Simon for establishing a fund that will help athletes reach their full potential.”

The endowment was established this past summer by former USOC President Simon and is intended for athletes who demonstrate financial need in order to continue training. Athletes applying for grants are required to complete an application and provide an essay on why they believe they are worthy grant recipients. Depending on the number of applications and earnings available on the original $1-million principal, there could possibly be one or two more grants awarded this year. The trustees can award any amount of money to eligible athletes as long as there is money left for the year. The distribution of up to 10 grants is expected beginning next year, but the trustees will decide on a rolling basis the actual number of grants awarded.

Name*

Email*

Welcome to our community. We invite you to join our discussion. Our community guidelines are simple: be respectful and constructive, keep on topic, and support your fellow commenters. Commenting signifies that you agree to our Terms of Use