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L.A. launches program to expand youth sports access

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti high-fives children on a baseball field
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti high-fives children from the L.A. City Recreation and Parks Department’s summer camp at Dodger Stadium in 2019.
(Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)
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The city of Los Angeles on Saturday launched a program to make sports more accessible to children.

The program, PlayLA, will ensure all residents ages 5 to 17 can participate in low-cost or free sports by subsidizing fees for leagues, classes and clinics for activities that include tennis, golf, basketball, soccer, judo and swimming, Mayor Eric Garcetti’s office said in a news release.

“Every young Angeleno deserves the opportunity to participate in sports, no matter their family income or physical ability,” Garcetti said in the statement.

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The initiative will also offer programming for children with physical disabilities, a first for the city’s youth sports repertoire, which might include sitting volleyball, adaptive swimming, goal-ball, para equestrian, para surfing, wheelchair basketball, adaptive athletics, wheelchair tennis and para-canoe, city officials said.

The program from the L.A. Parks and Recreation Department is being funded by a $9.6-million grant from the LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games, which has committed a total of $160 million to the initiative, according to the city.

“The launch of PlayLA is a huge accomplishment for L.A. Parks and for the scores of city youth who will become members of the best, all inclusive multi-sports program to equip them for a lifetime of activity, connection, and positive experiences,” Mike Shull, general manager of Los Angeles Parks and Recreation Department, said in a statement.

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Registration for the program’s winter season opened Saturday and costs $10 per person, the city said.

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