NEWS AND EVENTS

Tamika Catchings Named to President’s Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition

WASHINGTON – Today, President Biden announced his intent to appoint members of the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, & Nutrition. The President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, & Nutrition is a federal advisory committee that aims to promote healthy, accessible eating and physical activity for all Americans, regardless of background or ability. President Biden issued Executive Order 14048, renewing the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, & Nutrition, which allows for continued promotion of the National Youth Sports Strategy and provides for the work of the Council to include a focus on expanding national awareness of the importance of mental health as it pertains to physical fitness and nutrition.

In 2022, President Biden appointed José Andrés and Elena Delle Donne to serve as Co-Chairs of the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, & Nutrition.

President Biden announced his intent to appoint the following individuals to serve as members of the Council:

Maribel Campos Rivera

Tamika Catchings

Ayesha Curry

Stephen Curry

Jon Feinman

Tina Flournoy

Jose Garces

J. Nadine Gracia

Meg Ham

Kahina Haynes

Ryan Howard

Martin E. Ingelsby

Barbie Izquierdo

Ben Jacobs

Chloe Kim

Chaunte Lowe

Viviana Martinez-Bianchi

Elana Meyers Taylor

Dariush Mozaffarian

Kim Ng

Allison O’Toole

Oluwaferanmi Oyedeji Okanlami

Laura Ricketts

Stefany Shaheen

Billy Shore

Michael Solomonov

Melissa Stockwell

Maribel Campos Rivera

Dr. Maribel Campos Rivera is a Physician scientist, Board-Certified in Pediatrics, Neonatal and Perinatal Medicine and Obesity Medicine, with degrees in Health Care Administration and Clinical Research. She is a Robert Wood Johnson Interdisciplinary Research Leaders Alumni with over 20 years of experience implementing diverse research designs. As Professor of the University of Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus she has mentored trainees at different stages of training and backgrounds, providing them the opportunity to meet their community and be better equipped to address the social determinants of health. Her research work focuses on the effects of fetal and early childhood exposures on health across the lifespan. Her trajectory includes community action projects fostering a culture of health through system alignment, science education, and interdisciplinary care. Her team specializes in collaborating with community-based and professional organizations towards the development and implementation of evidence-based solutions that are place-based and community informed. Her role within the Voices for Healthy Kids community supported by the American Heart Association is just one example of their contributions towards health equity. She is the founder and Director of the Center for Community Outreach for Health Across the Lifespan and member of the Board of Directors of the Puerto Rico College of Physicians and Surgeons as President of the Research and Technological Development Institute. Her commitment to improve the rate of adoption of healthy lifestyles fueled her transition from NICU Medical Director to Founder of Emerge, a public benefit corporation dedicated to family-based holistic healthcare.

Tamika Catchings

One of the most decorated athletes of all time, Tamika Catchings has left an indelible mark at every level of the game. Catchings is a four-time Olympic gold medalist, ten-time WNBA All-Star, five-time Defensive Player of the Year, and a WNBA Champion. She helped lead the Indiana Fever to a league-record 12 consecutive playoff appearances and was 2011 league MVP and 2012 Finals MVP, leading the Fever to their first WNBA Championship. Catchings retired as the leading rebounder in WNBA history and second in all-time scoring.

In 2004, she launched the Catch the Stars Foundation, which empowers youth by providing goal setting programs that promote fitness, literacy, and youth development. In addition to the Foundation, Catchings operates the cozy Tea’s Me Café on the north side of downtown Indianapolis, and continues her engagement with basketball, serving as an ESPN/SEC Network Analyst. Catchings is the author of an autobiographical story, Catch A Star: Shining through Adversity to Become a Champion, sharing her story of overcoming hearing loss, separation from family, high expectations, and the pain of debilitating physical injuries. Catchings was routinely acknowledged for her sportsmanship and has received numerous accolades for her dedicated efforts on behalf of varied social causes, including the ESPN Sports Humanitarian of the Year, the WNBA’s Dawn Staley Community Leadership Award, the WNBA’s Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award, and the Pathfinder Award by the Indiana Sports Corporation, honoring those who improve the lives of America’s youth.