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June 17, 2004

CSUS Showcase to highlight University during
U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials

• University hosts works by Olympic artist
• What Price Liberty? to be Scholl’s swan song
• Author, runner to detail four-minute mile quest
• University Library to screen Olympic films
• Trials set to return to campus
• Schedule of events and Directions

Before the eyes of the world turn toward Athens for the 2004 Summer Olympic Games, many of them will be focused on California State University, Sacramento as the campus hosts for a second-consecutive time the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials July 9 to 18. But more than athletic excellence is on tap at CSUS. The University has planned an exciting series of exhibits, performances, concerts, lectures and displays to complement the competition.

Dubbed the “CSUS Showcase,” the events will offer bonus entertainment opportunities for the huge crowds expected for the Trials. The world-class competition attracted a record-setting crowd of more than 187,000 to CSUS over eight days in 2000.

A free reception with U.S. Olympic artist Euripides Kastaris at 6 p.m., Saturday, June 19 in the University Library Gallery will kick off a display of his works in the gallery that runs through July 31. "Rip" Kastaris has been commissioned to design and produce Kyklos-Circle of Glory a mural and sculpture for Athens Olympic Stadium in Greece. The artwork honors the return of the games to the land of its origins. Born in Thesaloniki, Greece and son of a Greek Orthodox priest, Kastaris is a graduate of Washington University School of Fine Art in St. Louis, Missouri. His artwork fuses themes of ancient Hellenic culture and modern athleticism in vibrant color. Titled “Enduring Vision: Works by Euripides ‘Rip’ Kastaris,” the show is sponsored by the Tsakopoulos Hellenic Foundation.

Author Neal Bascomb along with American track legend Wes Santee will team up for a special presentation on Bascomb’s book The Perfect Mile chronicling the quest of three runners to break the four-minute mile barrier in the early 1950s. Santee was one of the three athletes pushing the envelope of human foot speed. Sports Illustrated named the eventual barrier-breaking run, a 3:59.4 mile by Englishman Roger Bannister on May 6, 1954, as “the twentieth century’s greatest sporting achievement.” The talk, sponsored by the Hornet Bookstore, is set for 4 to 6 p.m., Thursday, July 15 in the University Library Gallery.

The University Library will host an Olympic film series starting at 7 p.m., June 14, in the University Union Hinde Auditorium. The first film is part one of Olympia, Leni Riefenstahl’s controversial film chronicling the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. The screening will include commentary by CSUS professor Phil DiMare. Other offerings include The First Olympics, The Jesse Owens Story, Tokyo Olympiad and Chariots of Fire.

CSUS Showcase exhibits include the “Celebrate Our Olympic Legacy” displays in the University Library through September 30 that feature “Off the Beaten Track: Sports in Traditional Societies,” a multi-media presentation of traditional “extreme sports; “ works by CSUS photography and interior and graphic design students in Mariposa Hall 4000 from July 9 to 18; and “Arts from the Africa Diaspora” in the University Union Gallery also from July 9 to 18. The artist will hold a talk at the gallery at noon, Saturday, July 11.

Performances include a reprise of Dale Scholl Dance/Art’s What Price Liberty? at 8 p.m., July 15 to 17 in the University Theatre. Scholl retired as a CSUS professor this year, and this will be her group’s last performance under her direction at the University. Tickets are $18 general, $16 students and seniors, $15 CSUS students and $8 for children 12 and younger and they are available from the CSUS Ticket Office at (916) 278-4323 or Ticekts.com. Hot music from the CSUS Latin Jazz Ensemble will fill the air from 5 to 7 p.m., Friday, July 16 outside the University Library.

For more information and a detailed schedule of events, see the CSUS Showcase website at www.csus.edu/events/showcase. For media assistance, contact CSUS public affairs at (916) 278-6156.

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