The USA Race Walking Foundation (formerly the North America Racewalking Institute (NARI)), established by Elaine P. Ward in 1992 as a subsidiary of her North American Racewalking Foundation (NARF, established in 1986), is a 501.c3 non-profit, tax-exempt, philanthropic organization dedicated to assisting college age and younger elite racewalkers in their quest for national and international prominence in racewalking. USARF's funds, used for this purpose, are generated solely through tax-deductible donations from individuals, groups, corporations, trusts, endowments, and other such entities whose common goal is to assist in the development of a strong North American, US only at this time, contingent of junior and open elite athletes who are training for their respective national teams, Olympic Trials, and Olympic Games.
NARI was instrumental in funding the ARCO Olympic Training Center for racewalkers in Chula Vista, CA, in the 1990's including subsidizing the salary for the racewalk coach and travel-training expenses of some of the Olympic athletes in the Sydney Games. We continued supporting athletes giving aid to virtually every Olympian since Sydney. NARI has an 18-year history of financially supporting elite racewalking athletes from youth through juniors to collegiate and many post collegiate athletes.
USA Race Walking Foundation: Junior, Elite, Collegiate Training Camp, December 2018
USA Race Walking Foundation accepts donations either in general or for a specific program. When clicking on the Donate Now button you can specify which fund you wish your donation to go to.
Payable to USA Race Walking Foundation
2247 North Geneva Terrace
Chicago, IL 60614
The Al Heppner Memorial Scholarship Fund, established in 2004, is dedicated to assisting soph/jun/senior university or college students who have demonstrated significant promise as elite walkers who clearly have the potential to make the Olympic Trials and quite possibly the Olympics. Collegiate athletes have been funded annually at $2,500 each since 2004.
Please donate to our tax deductable non profit now!
The Development Fund serves many important purposes. Starting with U20 athletes, we support up-and-coming USA race walkers. We host an annual development training camp in early January that focuses on U20 race walkers, elite and soon-to-be elite race walkers. The athletes can get a camp discount from the fund if they meet certain requirements. Additionally, USARWF gives grants to athletes attempting to gain standards for international competition, as well as grants to defray the costs of competing internationally.
Please donate to our tax deductable non profit now!
The Olympic Games Training Fund was created in 2012. USARWF now offers one additional donation option, specifically to assist athletes currently in training for the 2020 Olympic race walks in 20k and/or 50k. Donations earmarked for this Fund will be used solely to assist our best prospects. As such, applicants must have demonstrated times that approach the IAAF standards in their event. The Fund will provide assistance for travel to international meets, high altitude training sites, or assistance needed for a long-range training program.
Please donate to our tax deductable non profit now!
Great officials start with a strong education. Therefore, USARWF has created many videos explaining all the nuances associated with judging a race walk. We have followed up these educational tools with tests that provide visual validation of the ability of an official to correctly identify when a race walker is not in compliance with the definition; a visible loss of contact, or a bent knee violation. Please support our efforts as the content we create requires resources. Their production provides officials a higher level of professionalism.
USA Race Walking
Foundation and Racewalk.com teamed up to produce the free "Quick Guide to Race
Walking." In an attempt to grow our race walking and provide instructional information to
the masses, this two-page full-color 11x17 tri-fold brouchure is a perfect
introduction to race walking. It is an excerpt from Race Walk Clinic - in a
Book, a book by Jeff Salvage and Tim Seaman. Our goal is to
get the flyer in the hands of people who can spread the word. Primarily, this
includes college coaches (specifically NAIA), club coaches, and race directors. However,
any promoter of race walking is welcome to use it.
The brouchure is no longer available in printed form, but you can download and print the on-line pdf version.
Please download the USA Race Walking Foundation Junior Elite Training Camp Application, General Info, Additional Info and POW form.
USA Race Walking Foundation would love to hear from you, Please reach out to us directly at info@usracewalking.org.
You can also contact any of our board members directly.
Do you need a set of race walk paddles? A $55 donation to the Al Heppner Memorial Scholarship Fund will get you set of paddles including:
Diane Graham-Henry
