The San Francisco 49ers are in the middle of their offseason program, but the organization has still found plenty of time to give back to the community.
Last week, the San Francisco 49ers once again teamed up with the Bay Area Women’s Sports Initiative (BAWSI) for the 9th annual T.H.I.N.K. Gold! Conference. The Conference hosted over 50 female student-athletes from the Bay Area.
Per the 49ers, the day consisted of various activities that gave the participants tools to living a healthy life. The women spent time with Olympian Brandi Chastain, 49ers’ head coach Kyle Shanahan, and other members of the 49ers coaching staff who led the group in various conditioning drills.
“…[W]hatever your role is [in sports], you figure that out and you work at it,” Shanahan told the young women. “You want to be part of a sport, just work at it … I wasn’t the best football player, I really wasn’t. But, I wanted to play college football, so I worked at football over everything else … Just know if you work at things that’s what separates you from everyone else and I can see all you girls are doing that. Enjoy it while you do it too. Regardless of sports, you exercise like that and it helps you the rest of your life.”
The 49ers and BAWSI work to encourage “young women to maximize their full potential in athletics, academics and the community.” In addition to the physical and educational part of the day, participants sat with a panel of women who work for the 49ers to discuss the world of sports and the different career paths for females in the industry.
“It’s truly unique, I’d say,” said Olympian Brandi Chastain. “You don’t see a lot of girls coming out to professional male sports. What I love about the 49ers and the good that they do in the community is they recognize everybody that lives here…They give this special day to a handful of high school girls to have a different experience than what they’re used to…”
It was a great day for everyone involved, but most importantly, it was a special day the student athletes who were treated to a pretty incredible experience. Go Niners!
*All Photos Provided by 49ers.com
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