STRIVE4You & The TN School for the Blind Presents
The 2024 Star Spangled Goalball Tournament
July 19th – 21st 2024
STRIVE4You is proud to announce that registration is now open for the 2023 Star Spangled Goalball Tournament July 19th – 21st. The Star Spangled Goalball Tournament is a highly attended annual competition held minutes from downtown Music City, in Nashville Tennessee. Teams from around the country and even Canada have attended. Started in 2013 as the premier developmental Goalball tournament for teams and players wanting to compete with similar skilled players interested in improving their game. SSGT welcomes men, women, and especially veteran players to join us for great competition with our world renowned southern hospitality!!!
Honoring Our Veterans
Every year the Star Spangled Goalball Tournament and its participants honor those brave men and women who has given so much of themselves for our freedom by featuring them in our tournament. Each year at the conclusion of the tournament we have a special ceremony to highlight these extraordinary service members. This tournament is just one of many wonderful activities STRIVE4You provides to veterans with disabilities through our Veteran’s Healthy Tomorrow Initiative.
This Year’s Event
When: July 19th -21st 2024
Where: The Tn School for the Blind, 115 Stewarts Ferry Pike in Nashville, Tennessee, 37214
Registration Deadline: June 15th, 2024
Registration Fee: FREE for Disabled Veterans, and $60 per non-veteran player/coach
Tournament Make-up
This tournament is for developing and emerging players and teams interested in improving their skills. The first 8 men’s teams and 4 women’s teams to register and pay all fees will be admitted. We expect a full roster, so spots will fill up quickly. To ensure your team’s entry, do not delay in registering!
Tentative Schedule:
- Friday: Round Robin play from 1 PM to 9 PM
- Saturday: Games from 8 AM to 9 PM.
- Sunday: Championship games starting at 8 AM, concluding with an award ceremony by 2 PM.
The schedule is tentative and subject to change based on registration. All games will be played in a single gym. A detailed schedule, including team assignments, will be provided by July 10th.
Game Format:
- Round Robin, Quarterfinal, and Semifinal games will consist of 8-minute halves.
- Medal Round games will have 10-minute halves.
- All games will follow IBSA Goalball rules.
- Each team can expect to play at least four to six games, depending on the final registration count.
Roster and Registration Details:
- After registration closes, teams will have one week to make reasonable roster changes. Rosters will then be locked.
- Each team must have at least three eligible players present and on the court at the start time for each game, or they will forfeit the game. NO EXCEPTIONS.
- To avoid last-minute scrambling by the Tournament Director to find players, pull players from other teams, or reassign pool players, teams should ensure they have at least one substitute player or request a pool player at the time of registration. We understand that last-minute illnesses or travel delays can occur. Therefore, the Tournament Director will try to accommodate emergencies no later than 11 AM on Friday, July 19th, only if a player is available. Considerations will only be made for extreme extenuating circumstances. Otherwise, your team may have to forfeit your first game or even the entire tournament. Let’s avoid this by preparing ahead of time! Remember, a happy Director equals a happy tournament!
Pool Players Welcome
Don’t have a team? Register as a pool player! During registration teams may request a Pool Player to fill in their roster . After all requests have been filled, a pool team will be created with any remaining registered Pool players. Pool Players should plan to bring their own pads, goggles, and jerseys, though teams requesting Pool players may provide them with a team jersey. PLEASE NOTE: STRIVE4You will not provide any equipment or jerseys to any participants outside of veteran honored guests.
Veteran Players
Veterans as always, we want to honor and welcome you during the SSGT. Thanks to generous sponsors and the Challenged Athletes Foundation we will try to provide all your arrangements for the tournament FREE of charge. This includes Flights, lodging, meals, tournament entrance fees, and any equipment you need to participate. If we can not provide full scholarships as we have in the past we will make your out of pocket costs as low as we possibly can. Once you Register, we will contact you to go over all the details.
Registration
Registration opens on Friday May 24th until June 15th . No late registration will be excepted past this date. Registration fees are $60 per player/Coach This includes entrance into the tournament, two dinners and 2 lunches, ground transportation between venues and the hotel, and a tournament t-shirt.
Lodging
STRIVE4You has secured lodging at the Quality Inn & Suites Airport Nashville, 2615 Elm Hill Pike, Nashville Tn. Room rates for a two double bedroom with pull out couch is $114 per night and includes breakfast. There is an airport shuttle and a restaurant on site. There also may be overflow rooms at the LaQuenta Airport just down the street. You are welcome to seek other lodging options, however ground transportation will only be provided between the Quality Inn & Suites and the venue. The deadline to reserve your room is June 15th. Links to reserve your room is:
Host:http://www.choicehotels.com/ires/en-US/html/ArrivalInfo?hotel=TN206&srp=LS4U&pu=no
Backup: LaQuinta Nashville Airport- Strive4You
Ground Transportation
Ground transportation will be provided to and from the host hotel to the venue all three days. Shuttles will start approximately one hour prior to the first game of the day and will run thirty minutes after that start time. The return times will be announced in the final tournament packet sent out after registration closes. It will be your responsibility to get your own transportation from your chosen transportation hub to the host hotel and back. The airport, hotel and venue are all within three miles of each other. Also there is MTA Bus service, Para-transit (615-8803970), and Uber and Lyft are all available public transit services available in Nashville.
As stated above, veterans it is our honor to offer you ground transportation for your entire stay. We will have volunteers to pick you up from your transportation hub and take you to the hotel and back on Sunday. These details will be worked out after registration closes.
Questions & Concerns
You can reach our Tournament Organizer, Ricky Jones, between 9 AM-4 PM CDT at 1-866-40STRIVE (78748) extension 792 or via email at ricky@strive4you.org.