Robert Lewis wants young American soccer players to experience the Italian method of soccer training, and thanks to the Town of North Hempstead he will get that chance.
Lewis, an international business entrepreneur and attorney, said he is seeking to introduce an Italian Soccer Training Program in collaboration with Italian soccer powerhouse AC Milan in a permanent year-round soccer academy at a central location in the Town of North Hempstead.
“We want to take children who are passionate about the game. We want to help a child to become as good as he or she can,” Lewis said.
A spring clinic will be held at Unlimited Sports Action at 30 Beechwood Ave. in Port Washington on March 25 to 29 for children nine to 14 years old. Lewis and AC Milan trainers are also running the clinic and temporarily running the soccer academy with 16 players in the same location on Tuesday nights.
Lewis has also created a partnership with the junior camp of AC Milan for a day camp to be held at Michael J. Tully Park in New Hyde Park from June 23-29. An exchange program with 20 children participating in the summer camp are to be selected to spend a week of training at AC Milan Junior Camps in La Marche or Umbria, Italy.
“I leveraged my relationship with AC Milan,” said Lewis, who has contracted with the top Italian soccer club to start the training program, and an academy, here.
Lewis reached an agreement with the town to use Michael J. Tully Park as an initial training site for its summer soccer camp.
“North Hempstead is proud to collaborate in hosting this innovative program which will not only help young athletes develop good motor skills but also build strong self-esteem and give them an opportunity to travel abroad,” said Town of North Hempstead Supervisor Jon Kaiman in a statement.
Lewis said representatives of the AC Milan soccer club had visited the area, sampling games at youth leagues around the town and were impressed with the “natural athleticism” of young American soccer players.
“Their eyes popped open and they wanted to establish a program here,” Lewis said.
Lewis said young American players are learning to play soccer in youth leagues where the emphasis is on racking up victories rather than improving players’ techniques.
“Their focus is winning. Their focus is not developing players’ abilities,” he said.
The concept for the week-long June training program and the soccer academy is to train players in small groups with drills to develop and enhance basic skills about handling the ball on the soccer pitch. Between 80 and 100 players ill be admitted to the summer soccer camp. They will divided into groups, according to age and skill level, into four quadrants of a soccer field and alternate different drills in each quadrant. The camp will be open to all players in the Town of North Hempstead.
He said basic soccer motor skills are not being developed properly in the youth leagues that he has observed. His objective is to train players from age five though 11 in the basic skills while they can most readily assimilate them.
“Motor skill development is critical,” Lewis said. “The critical thing is to get these kids in early to adapt these skills naturally.”
The director of the summer camp will be Filippo Giovagnoli, manager of AC Milan Junior Camps in Italy.
“The goal is to improve the individual techniques and the individual tactics. If you don’t know this, you don’t know soccer,” Giovagnoli said.
Lewis said he and Giovagnoli have been scouting players at youth league games and speaking to parents about promising students for their academy program. Their objective, Lewis said, is not to recruit players to the academy away from their leagues, but simply to develop their skills intensively.
Lewis said he is currently in negotiations for a site in the New Hyde Park area where they can build an enclosed practice field.
“We don’t want training to stop because it’s too cold or too rainy,” he said. “We want to raise the level of playing in the Town of North Hempstead.”
His larger goal in the exchange program he hopes to develop is to take young American players to Italian camps and inviting Italian youngsters here as a form of cultural exchange.
“I want to expose American kids to other cultures and expose Italian kids to American culture,” Lewis said. “It’s very important to grow up with respect for other cultures.”
Registration for the spring clinic in Port Washington is open to 40 players for clinics at 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and up to 18 players for a goalkeepers clinic from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Fees for the week-long day camp to be staffed by AC Milan-certified trainers, will be $500 per student. Anyone interested in the March clinics or the June camp can find enrollment forms online at www.istepusa or call 516-474-1823 for more information.
