Sports Kids’ Goal: Character Through Fitness

The goal of the nonprofit Sports Kids, its founders say, is to build character in children through sports and physical fitness.

The four principals in the 18-month-old organization are Paul Stem, a former Delta Air Lines executive; Bob Mathias, a former Olympic decathlon champion who is the group’s president; Chuck Foster, the executive director, and Larry Sayler. Each is paid $85,000 a year, Foster said.

The group has an unpaid board of governors that includes celebrities such as Mike Love of the Beach Boys and Jermaine Jackson of the Jackson family.

In 1987, Mathias placed the organization’s headquarters in Irvine rather than Indianapolis, in part at the urging of then-Irvine City Councilman C. David Baker. Officials say that Baker opened doors and introduced Sports Kids leaders to influential people in Orange County.

The group, with offices in a suite on the 17th floor of the Irvine Marriott Hotel, says its goal is to build programs for children ages 5 and up, and to annually produce an international competition for boys and girls 10 to 13. The group’s motto is: “Participation Is Victory.”

The group had its first major fund-raiser in April featuring singer Donny Osmond. The event at the Marriott drew nearly 800 people who paid $250 a plate. Foster said the organization cleared $30,000 after expenses.

Last summer, its first international Earth Games were held on the campus of UC Irvine and drew 140 participants, including 14 from the Soviet Union and 16 from Mexico.

The second Earth Games, a 13-day event, will begin Aug. 13 at the Caliente Race Track in Tijuana, Mexico. About 500 children from 159 countries are expected to take part in games such as soccer, baseball and basketball.