-The Huntington High School YMCA is raising $750,000 to build two new gymnasiums, expand its fitness center and add more cardio equipment as part of its 2006 capital campaign.
-GlobalFit named Frank J. Napolitano, Jr., esq. president and CEO. Napolitano most recently was senior vice president, strategic planning and special projects for Town Sports International Inc. He is also past president of the International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association, having served on its board of directors from 1993 to 1997 and currently serving a second term on the board.
-Life Fitness and AthletiCo combined their technology for a full-swing biomechanical demonstration during the LaSalle Bank Open, June 5 to 11 at the Glen Club in Glenview, IL. Using Life Fitness equipment, AthletiCo, a Chicago-based provider of outpatient, orthopedic rehabilitation, works with the pros to develop their swing. Its Golf Performance Center in Oak Brook, IL, provides golf-specific therapy based on diagnostics in the science of 3D movement to help golfers understand their body and game.
XTREME Performance Inc., a manufacturer of natural performance enhancing nutritional products, will sponsor the second annual Face Me Ike football camp. The camp, held at Arden Cahill Academy’s Camp Corral in Gretna, LA, will benefit 250 Cahill Academy Summer Camp students in fourth through eighth grade. The Face Me Ike football camp is designed to give kids the opportunity to learn football techniques from some of the best players in the National Football League.
-More than 600 fitness professionals learned about some new classes in the industry -- Surf Boarding, Kardio Katami Sports Conditioning, Ballet Body Sculpt and Stiletto Strength -- at the Crunch Sweats conference, held June 10-11 in Atlanta.
-Les Mills International has reached the milestone total of 10,000 fitness clubs licensed to use its group exercise-to-music programs. The programs are offered in 10,011 facilities in more than 60 countries. The programs, called Group Fit Formulas, are created by Les Mills in Auckland, New Zealand, and distributed to licensed clubs through a network of international agents. Major initiatives leading up to the 10,000 club milestone included the re-launch of Les Mills in North America in May 2005. Instead of a single agent, distribution of the programs is now managed by a series of seven regional distributors throughout the United States and Canada.
-Falconhead Capital, LLC, of New York, a private equity firm specializing in investments in consumer-focused businesses, acquired a majority stake in Extreme Fitness Holding Corp., a fitness club operator in Toronto. The Extreme Fitness management team, including current co-owner Steve daCosta, was also a significant equity participant in the transaction, financial terms of which were not disclosed.
-The National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) hired Boyd Epley as director of coaching performance. Epley recently announced his retirement from his post as associate athletic director at the University of Nebraska where he was employed for 37 years. He will officially assume his duties with the NSCA August 1.
-Taraflex Sports Flooring by Gerflor is the official court flooring of the International Volleyball Federation. This summer’s 2006 Men’s World Volleyball League competitions in the United States mark the first American appearance of the flooring.
-Fysicly Fit, a provider of one-on-one personal training, is looking for trainers who want to operate their own fitness facilities. The company currently serves 700 customers in southern California but hopes to expand nationwide and worldwide.
-Oscoda Plastics, Inc., has added two regional flooring distributors to its distribution network for PROTECT-ALL ® Specialty Flooring products: Omaha Hardwood Lumber Company (dba OHARCO) in Omaha, NE; and Badger Metal Trims in Milwaukee, WI.