News

Pierre, SD – The South Dakota Beef Industry Council (SDBIC) and Sanford Health are excited to announce that the National Scholastic Athletic Foundation’s (NSAF) high school championship meet — The Outdoor Nationals, presented by Nike — will showcase the Build Your Base with Beef Program (Build Your Base) as it provides ready to use materials, best in class sports nutrition education, and high-quality protein to support optimal performance

The Outdoor Nationals, presented by Nike at Hayward Field at the University of Oregon, takes place Wednesday, June 30 – Saturday, July 3, 2021, three days after the completion of the U.S. Olympic Trials (June 18-27). It’s the NSAF’s 30th Outdoor Nationals since its first edition in Van Nuys, CA in 1991! The high school national championship awaits America’s top prep track and field talent and offers athletes a ground-breaking competitive experience, with the meet’s 4-day schedule structured to give special attention to different event groups on each day. Wednesday will be Throws Day, followed by Jumps Day (Thursday), Sprints/Hurdles Day (Friday) and Distance Day (Saturday). The relays and multis will be interspersed throughout the weekend.

The NSAF fully endorsed the Build Your Base with Beef program last Spring and sees it as an extremely valuable tool for young athletes.

“Track and field athletes in our National Scholastic Athletic Foundation (NSAF) community, whether runners, jumpers or throwers, need complete nutrition to fuel themselves for all of the rigors of training, and the full life experience of being a teenage student-athlete. You can’t take any shortcuts. The “Build Your Base with Beef” program offers nutritional education information that they can use as part of that balanced approach. High quality protein is essential for student-athletes and available from many sources. It’s valuable for them to learn how beef can be integrated into a nutritional profile to provide that.” – NSAF

Build Your Base will be providing program highlights through multiple media platforms, ready to use program materials as well as opportunities to learn more about the beef community. Athletes will also receive jerky through a partnership with Jack Links Protein Snacks as an official protein sponsor.

The program has already received endorsements from several professional athletes including several competing in this year’s U.S Track and Field Trials. U.S Pole Vaulters, Chris Nilsen, U.S. Track and Field Trials Champion and Olympian; Katie Nageotte; and Emily Grove; both still to compete in the trials; Reigning American Champion Heptathlete, Erica Bougard, and Hammer Throwers Rudy Winkler, U.S. Track and Field Trials Champion, American record holder, and Olympian and the reigning world gold medal Hammer Thrower and U.S. record holder, Deanna Price. Many of these Olympians competed in NSAF national championships in high school.

“As an athlete, having a diet high in protein and rich in nutrients is just as important as working out. I support the Build Your Base with Beef program because beef is a staple in my diet and fuels my success.”- Rudy Winkler, 2020 U.S. Olympian and American Record Holder

To learn more about the Build Your Base program and its national outreach efforts contact Suzy Geppert, sgeppert@sdbeef.org. The South Dakota Beef Industry Council works on behalf of South Dakota beef producers through the $1 Beef Checkoff program.