We are pleased to announce the first annual U.S. Open Competition and
Seminar designed for figure skating, basic skills, dance and slalom on
inline skates. Speakers will include ice coaches: Garrett Krug, Nick
Perna and Joe Kaplenk, among others. There will be a social event and
tentative judges training sessions for inline figure skating and
freestyle/slalom skating. The competition is only $25.00 per event and
the Seminar is only  $25.00. Competitors attend free.

The text of the press release follows.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Mar 5, 2009

Media Contacts:
Joe Kaplenk at (708) 707-0992 or Mary Lu Wehmeier at (909) 860-2494
Email: usopeninline2...@gmail.com
Website: http://usopeninline.com

The U.S. Open Inline Organizing Committee announces First Annual U.S.
Open Inline Chicago 2009 International Competition and Seminar May
1-3, 2009.

The First Annual U.S. Open Inline Chicago 2009 International
Competition and Seminar is the first inline only skating competition
ever held in the United States with the cooperation and approval of
USA RollerSports and U.S. Inline Figure Skating. The three-day event
will include an international competition, a trade show, and seminar
which is the first of it’s kind—highlighting inline skating to a level
this sport has not seen in this country. The event website http://usopeninline.com
has complete information for everyone.

The U.S. Open Inline Chicago 2009 will be held at the USA Skate
Center, Romeoville, IL. This world class facility will also be the
site of the 2009 Great Lakes Regional Artistic and Speed competitions
as well as a Chicago region IIWAL Artistic competition.

Individual events will focus on inline skating skills such as inline
figure skating, basic inline skating, and Slalom/Freestyle.  There has
been a continual growth in international popularity of inline figure
skating, as well as a recent significant worldwide growth of Freestyle
and Slalom skating. This competition and seminar will provide a fun,
educational and challenging competition that includes all levels and
types of inline skating, making this an experience for all skaters of
all ages from the beginner to the elite.

Inline skating is a sport that can be enjoyed anywhere and is competed
internationally under the Federation of International Roller Skating
(FIRS) organization at the World Championships every Fall. Inline
skating is used for training by ice skaters in areas where there are
limited or no opportunities to ice skate.  This annual competition and
seminar will be held in various locations around the United States in
subsequent years.

Besides the United States, this competition and seminar has attracted
interest from skaters  and coaches in Brazil, France, Germany, Iran,
India, Singapore and Belarus and other countries.  Competitors and
coaches will come representing many venues of skating:  inline, quad
or traditional roller skates, and ice.

We are inviting skaters, non-skaters, coaches and the general public
to learn about this growing sport at the seminar from May 1 to 3. This
will include aspects of training and discussion of off-skate training
techniques, inline skating technique and the use of training videos.
We will be doing sessions both on and off skates so everyone is
welcome to bring their inline skates! Fans of inline skating and the
public are invited to attend all sessions.

The organizing committee is looking for skaters, professionals and
coaches to speak at the seminars.  We invite them to contact the
organizing committee with their proposals to a presenter. The topics
can include presentations on nutrition and general athletic training
issues that are not directly skating related. We are also looking for
volunteers and individuals that want to help this sport to grow.

This competition includes:

•     Events in Free Skating, Dance, Precision, Show, Interpretation and
other similar figure skating events.
•     Events that do not require a program and provide a good test of the
skater’s skills and good for beginners to demonstrate their skills.
•     Events for beginners as well as expert skaters.
•     Survivor event-- A new original event designed to encourage team
play and fun.
•     Slalom/Freestyle using World Slalom Skaters Association (WSSA) rules
in cooperation with the U.S. Freestyle Skaters Association.

The first-annual U.S. Open Inline Chicago 2009 Competition and Seminar
is sponsored by U.S. Federation of Inline Figure Skaters (USFIFS) dba
U.S. Inline Figure Skating,  which can be contacted at  P.O. Box
1970,  Bolingbrook, IL 60440 at  http://usinlinefigureskating.org and
email can be sent to i...@usfifs.org

USA RollerSports (USARS) http://rollersports.usoc.org  is the
recognized by U.S. Olympic Committee as the national governing body
for roller sports in the United States, and is a member of Federation
of International Roller Skating (FIRS) the governing body for all
roller sports by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). In
addition, USFIFS has developed working relationships with U.S. Figure
Skating, USA Hockey Inline and US Freestyle Skaters Association.
USFIFS is a membership-based non-profit corporation and a qualified
IRS 501(c)(3) tax-deductible organization.

END

Additional information, updates story lines and hooks are available
now. A list of potential attending skaters available for interviews is
forthcoming. Online video of similar international events are
available upon request. Media Credentials for print, communications
and online reporters will be made available to credentialed reporters
and media outlets upon email request. A dedicated media email address
is me...@usopeninline.com

Joe Kaplenk
Chair U.S.Open Inline Chicago 2009
http://usopeninline.com
President
U.S. Inline Figure Skating
http://usinlinefigureskating.org