If anyone was wondering what it meant to have sports superstar David Beckham make a trip to our little corner of the world, its painted all over the permanent smile on the face of Park City’s Jonas Peek.

The smile means a lot more than the excitement of the game or the opportunity to shake hands with sport greatness. It’s the outward sign of a young boy’s dreams fulfilled.

Peek, who is only eight, has spent the last four months battling Hodgkin’s lymphoma. When his parents learned that Real Madrid and Beckham were due to a make a trip to Salt Lake City, they knew that this might be the chance to give their little boy a big ray of soccer sunshine in his otherwise difficult life.

Before Peek became sick he was just learning the game of soccer. His parents had signed him up for soccer with the Park City Extreme Club and he spent his free time kicking the soccer ball around with his 11-year-old brother, Riley.

Then everything changed.

In the spring, Jonas’ parents noticed that the young boy’s lymph nodes were swollen. A doctor’s visit gave the Peeks some news they weren’t expecting cancer. Luckily, Jonas was only in stage one, which meant it was easily treatable with chemotherapy. The Peeks pulled the second grader out of school at McPolin Elementary and began the long journey to cure their young son.

Jonas had wonderful support from his friends. Schoolmates took turns escorting him on hospital visits and both Jonas’ and Riley’s friends shaved their heads to show solidarity. But soccer soon became the beacon that helped Jonas cope through four grueling months of chemo and recovery.

As Jonas will tell you, he’s had his good days and his bad days, but, on the good days, his after-school sport soon became his main focus. His father, Bob, says that when his energy was up, Jonas could stand in his yard for hours just kicking the ball around or passing back and forth with his brother and father. During the early weeks of chemo treatment, when Jonas was too tired to even get out of bed, World Cup soccer games entertained him and kept his mind off of the scary things that were going on in his small body.

And that is why, when it was confirmed that Beckham was on his way to Utah, the Peeks were determined to make some soccer magic for Jonas.

"Soccer has been a lifeline through his cancer ordeal," explained Jonas’ mother Lynn.

So, she contacted the Make-A-Wish Foundation to put in her son’s request. She said the results were absolutely amazing.

"My original wish was to kick the ball with Beckham and meet him," explained Jonas, but Make-A-Wish, Real Salt Lake and Real Madrid went way beyond his expectations.

They were determined to make the event part of the best week of Jonas’ life.

"I can’t believe how far they go out of their way to make it special," Lynn said.

Meeting Beckham was just the beginning for Jonas and the entire Peek family. The team put them in a hotel room at the Grand America, the same hotel as the Real Madrid team, and made sure Jonas had some spending money for his special week. The boys were treated to an exclusive autograph session with Beckham and other stars from the Madrid team. Next came a clinic during which Beckham took time to personally show Jonas how much he cared.

"Beckham was so nice," said Lynn repeatedly.

Bob agreed.

"It was cool. All us were really impressed with him and how outgoing he was," Bob said.

To top things off, both boys were named ball boys for Xango Cup game between Real Salt Lake and Real Madrid. Jonas walked in with another Madrid megastar, Raul, who also lavished attention on Jonas.

"Real Madrid creates an atmosphere that fans are really important," Lynn said. "They were gracious and friendly."

Throughout the game the boys assisted the officials by throwing back any game balls that went astray.

Riley, who has been there for his brother throughout the entire cancer experience, says that being included in Jonas’ wish was incredible.

"I’m really lucky because I get to do everything, but I don’t have to pay the price," he said giving Jonas an encouraging smile.

But perhaps the best part of the whole experience was how perfectly the timing of the Madrid visit coincided with Jonas’ cancer battle. The week before, Jonas finished his final round of chemotherapy, ending a four-month ordeal of hospitals, doctors and constants bouts of exhaustion and discomfort. So, the arrival of Beckham also meant the arrival of a cure for little Jonas and with his new soccer obsession, there could have been no better way to celebrate.

Not to be outdone, Real Salt Lake also made sure that they were part of the Jonas’ healing process. Real Salt Lake owner, Dave Checketts, has a son who is a cancer survivor and other members of team management have also been touched by the disease, so the team was committed to helping Jonas make a speedy recovery.

"The people from Real Salt Lake were amazing going 100 miles past what we expected," said Bob.

Players sent signed balls and the team provided tickets throughout Jonas’ treatments. Goalie Scott Garlick, who lives in Park City and also coaches with Extreme, even sat with Jonas during a chemo session.

"Jonas walked out of the hospital not feeling sick, because of Scott Garlick," Lynn said.

Not sure whether it was hope, or inspiration or just a smiling face, the Peeks are sure that, somehow, soccer has made a difference in their son’s recovery. It worked to keep his spirits healthy, even when he was so sick.

The funny thing is Bob and Lynn never really followed soccer before Jonas got sick, but the smile it delivered has made the entire family fans forever.

The post Jonas’ Real wish comes true appeared first on Park Record.

If anyone was wondering what it meant to have sports superstar David Beckham make a trip to our little corner of the world, its painted all over the permanent smile on the face of Park City’s Jonas Peek.

The smile means a lot more than the excitement of the game or the opportunity to shake hands with sport greatness. It’s the outward sign of a young boy’s dreams fulfilled.

Peek, who is only eight, has spent the last four months battling Hodgkin’s lymphoma. When his parents learned that Real Madrid and Beckham were due to a make a trip to Salt Lake City, they knew that this might be the chance to give their little boy a big ray of soccer sunshine in his otherwise difficult life.

Before Peek became sick he was just learning the game of soccer. His parents had signed him up for soccer with the Park City Extreme Club and he spent his free time kicking the soccer ball around with his 11-year-old brother, Riley.

Then everything changed.

In the spring, Jonas’ parents noticed that the young boy’s lymph nodes were swollen. A doctor’s visit gave the Peeks some news they weren’t expecting cancer. Luckily, Jonas was only in stage one, which meant it was easily treatable with chemotherapy. The Peeks pulled the second grader out of school at McPolin Elementary and began the long journey to cure their young son.

Jonas had wonderful support from his friends. Schoolmates took turns escorting him on hospital visits and both Jonas’ and Riley’s friends shaved their heads to show solidarity. But soccer soon became the beacon that helped Jonas cope through four grueling months of chemo and recovery.

As Jonas will tell you, he’s had his good days and his bad days, but, on the good days, his after-school sport soon became his main focus. His father, Bob, says that when his energy was up, Jonas could stand in his yard for hours just kicking the ball around or passing back and forth with his brother and father. During the early weeks of chemo treatment, when Jonas was too tired to even get out of bed, World Cup soccer games entertained him and kept his mind off of the scary things that were going on in his small body.

And that is why, when it was confirmed that Beckham was on his way to Utah, the Peeks were determined to make some soccer magic for Jonas.

"Soccer has been a lifeline through his cancer ordeal," explained Jonas’ mother Lynn.

So, she contacted the Make-A-Wish Foundation to put in her son’s request. She said the results were absolutely amazing.

"My original wish was to kick the ball with Beckham and meet him," explained Jonas, but Make-A-Wish, Real Salt Lake and Real Madrid went way beyond his expectations.

They were determined to make the event part of the best week of Jonas’ life.

"I can’t believe how far they go out of their way to make it special," Lynn said.

Meeting Beckham was just the beginning for Jonas and the entire Peek family. The team put them in a hotel room at the Grand America, the same hotel as the Real Madrid team, and made sure Jonas had some spending money for his special week. The boys were treated to an exclusive autograph session with Beckham and other stars from the Madrid team. Next came a clinic during which Beckham took time to personally show Jonas how much he cared.

"Beckham was so nice," said Lynn repeatedly.

Bob agreed.

"It was cool. All us were really impressed with him and how outgoing he was," Bob said.

To top things off, both boys were named ball boys for Xango Cup game between Real Salt Lake and Real Madrid. Jonas walked in with another Madrid megastar, Raul, who also lavished attention on Jonas.

"Real Madrid creates an atmosphere that fans are really important," Lynn said. "They were gracious and friendly."

Throughout the game the boys assisted the officials by throwing back any game balls that went astray.

Riley, who has been there for his brother throughout the entire cancer experience, says that being included in Jonas’ wish was incredible.

"I’m really lucky because I get to do everything, but I don’t have to pay the price," he said giving Jonas an encouraging smile.

But perhaps the best part of the whole experience was how perfectly the timing of the Madrid visit coincided with Jonas’ cancer battle. The week before, Jonas finished his final round of chemotherapy, ending a four-month ordeal of hospitals, doctors and constants bouts of exhaustion and discomfort. So, the arrival of Beckham also meant the arrival of a cure for little Jonas and with his new soccer obsession, there could have been no better way to celebrate.

Not to be outdone, Real Salt Lake also made sure that they were part of the Jonas’ healing process. Real Salt Lake owner, Dave Checketts, has a son who is a cancer survivor and other members of team management have also been touched by the disease, so the team was committed to helping Jonas make a speedy recovery.

"The people from Real Salt Lake were amazing going 100 miles past what we expected," said Bob.

Players sent signed balls and the team provided tickets throughout Jonas’ treatments. Goalie Scott Garlick, who lives in Park City and also coaches with Extreme, even sat with Jonas during a chemo session.

"Jonas walked out of the hospital not feeling sick, because of Scott Garlick," Lynn said.

Not sure whether it was hope, or inspiration or just a smiling face, the Peeks are sure that, somehow, soccer has made a difference in their son’s recovery. It worked to keep his spirits healthy, even when he was so sick.

The funny thing is Bob and Lynn never really followed soccer before Jonas got sick, but the smile it delivered has made the entire family fans forever.

The post Jonas’ Real wish comes true appeared first on Park Record.

As part of the annual Utah Skeleton and Bobsled Association (USBA) Friends and Family End of the Season Party, various government dignitaries, including Utah Governor Jon Huntsman, Salt Lake Mayor Rocky Anderson, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon, Park City Mayor Dana Williams and Summit County Commissioner Sally Elliott will take a ride down the 2002 Olympic skeleton track at the Utah Olympic Park.

According to USBA vice-president Bob Springmeyer, the idea to invite the various officials had been tossed around for a couple years, but this was the first time the club did anything about it. The response was overwhelming. Even with busy and conflicting schedules, all Springmeyer had to do to secure the appearance of all of the officials was send an email and they all responded, "yes."

"I think it’s a direct result of the Olympics," Springmeyer said. "Frankly I think a lot of people feel like they want to do it again."

It was the Olympic sprit that originally drove the USBA to send out the invitations. Springmeyer said that the entire event is a celebration of preparing for Vancouver 2010 Olympics. On hand will be 2005 World Cup Champion Noelle Pikus-Pace, Olympian Zach Lund, and 2005 Europa Cup Champion Chris Hedquist as well as Parkites Felicia and Brady Canfield who have competed on both the Europa and America’s Cup tours. This will also be an opportunity for the dignitaries to see how talented some of the up-and-coming sliders are, many of whom could qualify for the Vancouver Games. Springmeyer also wants to show off the quality of the track, the greater possibilities for recreational and competitive sliding and the possibility of hosting another Olympic Games sometime in the future.

"It’s a bit of an investment in the future," Springmeyer explained. "They can say they did that and get to see these athletes."

The day will start out with a small party with club members, their families and government officials. Then the group will head to the track for a briefing on technique and safety. The various dignitaries will then partner up with the elite athletes and head to the start. The sliding will take place from the junior start, which is lower in altitude and ideal for beginners. Once all of the elected officials are finished the club athletes and their families will head down the track.

Springmeyer says that only two people have ever been injured at the season-ending party, and both were minor, so he is confident that the lawmakers will emerge at the finish dock unscathed.

The Friends and Family Day was originally created by the USBA to allow parents to see what their young athletes are doing, experience the thrill ride for themselves, as well as expose younger siblings to the competitive side of the support. Springmeyer hopes that the addition of the officials will only add to the excitement of the day, and put a greater emphasis on the facility and what a gift it is to the greater community.

"We’re extraordinarily lucky," Springmeyer said. "It’s here and it’s available to us."

The sliding will begin at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 18 at the UOP track. For more information on USBA, please visit www.UTAHICE.org .

The post Lawmakers to launch down UOP trackAdia Waldburger appeared first on Park Record.

As the No. 2 doubles team from Lone Peak High School exited the tennis courts after the match against Park City’s Tyson Smith and Hunter Nicholas, they commented to their coach, "These guys are kamikazes. They come after you 24-7."

And so went the rest of the match hosted by the Miners. As the defending 3A State champions, the team is stacked with talent and only seems to have added to their dominance with powerful freshman, such as Nicholas. From the No. 1 singles position all the way down to the No. 2 doubles, the Miners easily beat Lone Peak in straight sets.

Pretorius says that despite the team’s prowess, their focus is not just on winning.

"Our goal this season is not to win State. It’s to play to our potential," Pretorius said. "If we give our all and don’t win, we’re fine."

Pretorius said he was very pleased with how his team performed in their season debut, especially the No. 2 doubles duo.

"I see some really good things with our No. 2 team," Pretorius said. "I think they played very well."

The team is playing without the help of the team’s best player Fletcher Keyes, who will miss much of the season’s start with a wrist injury, but Pretorius isn’t worried.

"We’re one of the few teams that could lose the No. 1 player and still have a perfect season," Pretorius said. "We’ve got all these guys ready to play."

The team has expanded its year, stretching its roster to 25 athletes. Pretorius says its his policy never to reject an interested player.

"I hate to turn any kid away from tennis. They never play again after high school," Pretorius said. "That’s why we have such a strong program. It’s a system that feeds on itself."

With this mission in mind, Pretorius uses the extra players to keep stats, boost team morale, all the while helping them improve their game. Helping Pretorius out with all of the boys this year is Tim Donnelly, the Park City girls’ team assistant coach. This is the first year Pretorius has sought assistance, but felt it was necessary to manage the large squad.

Pretorius is also committed to team building. He requires his varsity players to stay and cheer on the junior varsity and plans on using upcoming away matches, such as the St. George Tournament next weekend, to focus on team building. With so many new players, Pretorius says strong team morale is crucial.

In the meantime, the boys will face Bountiful High School on Tuesday, March 21 at the Park City Racquet Club at 3 p.m. As one of top teams in 4A, Pretorius hopes that the players will continue to play their best.

"We’re performance oriented, not results oriented," Pretorius said.

The post Miners swing into the seasonDefending 3A state champs start year with win against Lone Peak appeared first on Park Record.

For Rosie Brennan, winning national titles is becoming an annual occurrence.

Brennan, a JI (top-level) cross-country skier, won the 10 K Girls Classic race at the Junior Olympic National Championships last week in Houghton, Mich.

The Park City High School senior is no stranger to wearing the Junior Olympic crown. Last year she collected a stunning three gold medals and one silver medal, instantly propelling herself from relative anonymity to national prominence on the developmental circuit.

"She’s an up-and-comer," said coach Gordon Lange. "This shows you she can compete with anyone in this country."

Although her trip this year wasn’t quite as storied as last year, Lange was pleased with her effort. Brennan spent all winter proving herself on the snow and the Junior Olympics was just one of many big events. At the U.S. National Championships, she qualified for the Scando Cup, a developmental race series in Scandanavia that only takes the best of the best youth in the world.

Brennan wasn’t the only Park City youth to fare well. Elizabeth Guiney, a J2 who competes with Brennan in both cross-country skiing and running throughout the year, finished ninth in the 5K Freestyle race. The win earned her All-American status (top 10 finish.)

"She really buckled down and prepared for that race," Lange said.

Guiney also took second in the 3x3K relay.

Both Brennan and Guiney are members of the National Sports Foundation (NSF) elite cross-country team. Now in its second year, the program serves as the only one in the area committed to getting Nordic-minded youth to the next level. Other NSF athletes at the event included Parkites Andrew Putt and Kirsten Stray-Gunderson and Ben Page of Salt Lake. In his first appearance at the Junior Olympics, Putt, a J2, took 16th in the 5K Classic.

Lange said that all of athletes performed well and hopes that some of the younger skiers will continue to improve.

"We did so well last year, it’s tough to not do as well, but we had some younger skiers that are going to be really good," Lange said.

Lange is also hoping the success will encourage more youth to try the sport. Right now, he says the NSF has very talented, dedicated athletes, but wants he to see the numbers grow.

"We haven’t had much focus on development and trying to get kids involved," Lange said.

In its early stages, the program was designed to start slowly as it became established, but now Lange would like to work on increasing the participation level and showing interested parents the quality of the program.

"I think we’ll see it grow almost automatically," he said.

Lange added that competitive cross-country skiing still has a long way to go to compete with the world. Once Brennan graduates, her options to continue to develop at a world-class rate is a bit limited, but he hopes as emerging youth get better and better the money from the U.S. Ski Team and other programs will follow.

For the official Junior Olympic results, log onto www.2006juniorolympics.org . For more information on the NSF, visit www.nsfparkcity.org .

The post Junior Olympics crown Brennan again appeared first on Park Record.

For Park City soccer coach Mike Guetschow, there is nothing better than good old-fashioned teamwork.

With a team loaded with talent, he knows that any player can step up at any time, but he is most pleased when they all work together to produce good results, which was the case on Thursday afternoon when they shut out Lehi 4-0.

Scheduled as a rivalry game Lehi, now in 4A — used to be a 3A school that was in Park City’s region, so the Miners always get fired up for the game. This year was no different.

The Miners started out strong with a couple early scoring attempts. Roberto "Betu" Linck was finally able to convert for the first goal 20 minutes into the first half, dribbling past three Lehi defenders and putting a low shot past the keeper. The Miners were able to maintain the 1-0 lead heading into the half.

Early in the second, Linck was able to score again off of a clean pass from Steven Hart. Then the Miners teamwork really shined with a third goal coming off of eight different passes, finishing with a pass from Harrison Holley to Reid Baker to Nick Gunderson, who slotted the shot into the net.

Guetschow was especially pleased with the play of Holley, filling in for starter Ryan Williams, who missed the game due to an emergency appendectomy.

"There’s a lot of talent in this program. If anyone’s slipping or hurt, there are guys ready to get their chance," Guetschow said.

Later in the second, Baker juked a Lehi defender in the box and was brought down, which resulted in a penalty kick. Baker was able to convert for the final goal.

The Miners’ defense was able to notch the shutout on the play of Chase Gordon and Matt Knoop, who effectively controlled the midfield throughout the game. Guetschow said Robby Patrick also helped on the defensive side of the ball playing his best game thus far.

In the second, Austin Blais put considerable pressure on the Lehi offense, which kept them quiet until the very end. With 10 minutes left in the game, a foul against Lehi gave them a penalty kick, which Park City goal-minder Ryan Lynsky stopped on a dive to the left of the net to preserve the shutout.

The junior varsity squad was able to match the production of their varsity counterparts, turning in their 4-0 performance. Goals were scored by Austin Stevens, Tyler Thomas, Adam Laufer and Bryan Johnson. Goalkeeper Jacob Sirianni recorded his second shutout.

The Miners, now 3-1 in preseason play, will travel to take on defending 4A state champion Lone Peak, who moved up to 5A this year, on Saturday, March 18 at 10 p.m. Region play begins the following Monday at Uintah at 3:30 p.m.

The post Park City silences Lehi with shutout appeared first on Park Record.

Looks like the skeleton world’s loss is Park City’s gain. 2002 Olympic gold medallist Jim Shea returns to the area this week after announcing his retirement from international skeleton competition at the 2005 National Team Trials held in Calgary, Canada last week.

Shea is a native of Connecticut and Lake Placid, N.Y., but has no intentions of returning home just yet. For Shea, home has become Park City. After all, it was here that Shea became the only American to capture an Olympic gold medal in men’s skeleton, and it’s here that he plans to build the next stage of his life.

"I’ve moved to Utah and feel at home with it," Shea said. "I’m planning to do a lot more for my foundation, the Shea Foundation, which raises money for youth sports."

Shea entered the highest level of international skeleton competition over a decade ago, when he made the 1995 World Cup team. From there, he went on to set the standard in his sport. He became the first American to win the World Cup in skeleton. He was the first American to win a gold, silver and bronze in the World Championships, and the first to win the Goodwill Games in 2000. He has also set track records all over the world for push and down time. But like anything in life, it had to come to an end at some point. And for Shea, that time was this season after finishing seventh in the time trials. "Retirement is because I’m older. The young kids are better, faster and stronger," Shea said. "Anyone who doesn’t say that would be lying."

Shea had already flirted with the notion of retiring before the race in Calgary, but went through with it for his father. Jim Shea, Jr., a Nordic combined athlete in the 1964 Olympics, was recently selected as the president of the United States Bobsled and Skeleton Federation (USBSF). When the elder Shea was considering the position, he made a pact with his son that he would take it only if his son gave qualifying for one last Olympics a shot.

"My heart wasn’t in it, but I promised my dad I’d do it," Shea said. "I went to time trials and did the best I could. I had equipment trouble, but I can’t take anything away from the young kids. They are really fast and working hard. I wish them all the luck in the world."

Shea realizes that he only has himself to blame for the emergence of young and fast skeleton sliders by bringing the sport out of the shadows of bobsled and promoting it through both his accomplishments and his affable personality with both the public and the press.

"My father said, ‘That will teach you to make your sport popular,’" Shea said, laughing.

Shea has already been approached to start coaching skeleton, but he would rather wait to do that in later years. Right now, he is ready to truly experience Park City, without the pressure of training and the constant travel of competition. He wants to become a full member of the community, enjoying the mountains and taking time for himself.

"I just got done sledding. I want to spend some time with my dog, skiing at Deer Valley, snowmobiling& just do some things I haven’t been able to do in the last few years," Shea said.

That doesn’t mean that Shea is not still a part of the skeleton community. He works one-on-one with some of the promising, young local kids and is donating runners and trophies to Park City youth programs.

Through the Shea Foundation, he also hopes to continue to lend assistance to needy youth sports programs in the area. He plans on donating jackets to Park City Lacrosse and is always looking for other programs that truly need his help.

"[I pick] things that make kids feel great about what they’re doing and participation in sports," Shea said.

Shea also plans on working with the Utah Olympic Park (UOP) to help promote their programs and events. The track and venue hold a lot of good memories for Shea, and he wants to make sure the greater community is aware of all that the park has to offer.

"I want the community to use it and have fun with it really enjoy it, watch competitions and try the new rides," Shea said.

He also plans to start on the motivational speaking circuit, lending his experiences and wisdom to charity events or wherever the community might need him.

Basically, Shea just wants to embrace Park City fully now that his sliding days are over.

"I’m looking forward to getting back to Park City. I’ve been traveling the world for 10 years and I’ve never met a mayor as cool as Dana, and there’s a good tax base to do things for kids," Shea said. "I really want to give back. I had a good conversation with Zion’s Bank and giving back to the community with different fundraisers and organizations."

All this is not to say that Shea won’t miss his sport. He says that he received massive support and well wishes from the skeleton community and he plans to continue supporting the bright stars in the sport, especially those from Utah. One such athlete is Noelle Pikus-Pace, who broke her leg in a freak collision with a bobsled in Calgary. Shea was there when the ambulance took her away. He visited her in the hospital and gave her words of inspiration from his own experiences that she could come back from injury to win a medal in Italy.

"I told her that the easiest thing to do is give up," Shea said. "She had a real conviction in her to come back. She’s a real hard worker," Shea said.

Shea will never be able to stray too far away from the world of Winter Olympic sports. The Sheas are the only American family with three generations of Olympians and heunderstands the significance of his accomplishments. "I’m just really proud to be a part of the most famous Olympic family in winter sports," Shea said.

His grandfather, Jack, was a double gold medallist in the 1932 Olympics in speed skating and will be inducted into the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) Hall of Fame this year. In fact, it was the senior Shea that instilled the Olympic conviction in the youngest Shea.

"He said having a gold medal is a real responsibility and representing your country is a real responsibility," Shea said. "It was a huge honor to represent Utah and the U.S. for the last couple of years."

For more information on Shea’s foundation or booking Shea for a speaking engagement at a charity function, log onto www.usshea.com or www.sheafamilyfoundation.com.

The post Shea: Back from the track appeared first on Park Record.