María Elena Batista
Encyclopedia
María Elena Batista currently is a sports administrator in Puerto Rico
. As the city of San Juan, Puerto Rico
's Director of Sports and Recreation since January, 2001, she helped revive the previously underused and dilapidated Hiram Bithorn
Stadium, attracting MLB's Opening Day Game in 2001, twenty-two yearly home games of the now defunct Montreal Expos
(now known as the Washington Nationals
) in 2003 and 2004, the 2006 and 2009 World Baseball Classic
games and a series of MLB New York Mets
games in 2010. In the summer of 2006, she brought NBA's "Basketball without Borders" program to San Juan. In September 2006, Mayor Jorge Santini inaugurated the San Juan Municipal Sports Magnet School. In December 2006, another of her projects, the $28 million San Juan Natatorium opened to the public and attracted winter training from over 10 stateside college swim
teams, including the United States Military Academy
. In March 2007 she personally began a campaign to rescue low-income youths who were dangerously diving off city bridges into polluted waters and introducing them to the diving facilities at the new Natatorium.
In July 2007, the first phase of San Juan's Golf
complex and San Juan Golf Academy, a reuse of the city's former sanitary landfill
, opened to the public. The first phase includes a state-of-the-art Golf Academy and a driving range
atop the former landfill with 360 degree views of the capital city. Batista has reportedly begun recruiting low-income children to begin golf training.
By 2008, Batista had helped attract several sports teams to San Juan, including two teams of the new Puerto Rico Soccer League
and the Santurce
Crabbers (Cangrejeros) baseball team. She is negotiating to bring the Crabbers as well as the San Juan Senators teams back to play in Bithorn Stadium for winter 2010.
In February 2010, Batista's department hosted the Latin American Regional Special Olympics
, a two-week long event that included over one thousand young athletes, and the presence of Dr. Timothy Shriver, CEO of the worldwide organization, and Martín Torrijos
, former president of Panama
. Santini and Batista traveled to Morocco
later that year to put in a bid for San Juan to host the 2015 worldwide Special Olympics.
Prior to Batista's career as a sports administrator, she was a competitive swimmer, having represented Puerto Rico in several Central America
n and Caribbean
Games, Pan American Games
and the 1988 Olympics
in Seoul, South Korea. After graduating from Puerto Rico's Sacred Heart University
in 1994, she served as the Sports Director of Puerto Rico's Department of Education Sports Magnet School, located at the Puerto Rico Olympic Committee
training facilities in Salinas, Puerto Rico
, obtained an MBA and began teaching business administration at Turabo University
in Caguas, Puerto Rico
. She is the daughter of former Superior Court Judge Elpidio Batista, who served a stint as President of the Puerto Rico Baseball Winter League, is separated from Puerto Rico Secretary of State
Kenneth McClintock
and is the mother of two teenagers.
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
. As the city of San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...
's Director of Sports and Recreation since January, 2001, she helped revive the previously underused and dilapidated Hiram Bithorn
Hiram Bithorn
Hiram Gabriel Bithorn was a Puerto Rican right-handed pitcher who became the first baseball player from Puerto Rico to play Major League Baseball...
Stadium, attracting MLB's Opening Day Game in 2001, twenty-two yearly home games of the now defunct Montreal Expos
Montreal Expos
The Montreal Expos were a Major League Baseball team located in Montreal, Quebec from 1969 through 2004, holding the first MLB franchise awarded outside the United States. After the 2004 season, MLB moved the Expos to Washington, D.C. and renamed them the Nationals.Named after the Expo 67 World's...
(now known as the Washington Nationals
Washington Nationals
The Washington Nationals are a professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals are a member of the Eastern Division of the National League of Major League Baseball . The team moved into the newly built Nationals Park in 2008, after playing their first three seasons in RFK Stadium...
) in 2003 and 2004, the 2006 and 2009 World Baseball Classic
World Baseball Classic
The World Baseball Classic is an international baseball tournament sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation and created by Major League Baseball , the Major League Baseball Players Association , and other professional baseball leagues and their players associations around the world...
games and a series of MLB New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
games in 2010. In the summer of 2006, she brought NBA's "Basketball without Borders" program to San Juan. In September 2006, Mayor Jorge Santini inaugurated the San Juan Municipal Sports Magnet School. In December 2006, another of her projects, the $28 million San Juan Natatorium opened to the public and attracted winter training from over 10 stateside college swim
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
teams, including the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
. In March 2007 she personally began a campaign to rescue low-income youths who were dangerously diving off city bridges into polluted waters and introducing them to the diving facilities at the new Natatorium.
In July 2007, the first phase of San Juan's Golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
complex and San Juan Golf Academy, a reuse of the city's former sanitary landfill
Landfill
A landfill site , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
, opened to the public. The first phase includes a state-of-the-art Golf Academy and a driving range
Driving range
A driving range is an area where golfers can practice their swing. It can also be a recreational activity itself for amateur golfers or when enough time for a full game is not available. Many golf courses have a driving range attached and they are also found as stand-alone facilities, especially...
atop the former landfill with 360 degree views of the capital city. Batista has reportedly begun recruiting low-income children to begin golf training.
By 2008, Batista had helped attract several sports teams to San Juan, including two teams of the new Puerto Rico Soccer League
Puerto Rico Soccer League
The Puerto Rico Soccer League or PRSL is an association football league in Puerto Rico. It is the first unified football league in the island's history, and had a total of six teams for the 2011 season. Association football has been growing in popularity in recent years, and this is an attempt to...
and the Santurce
Santurce
Santurce can refer to:*Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico, a district of San Juan, the capital of Puerto Rico*Santurtzi, a town near Bilbao, the Basque Country, Spain...
Crabbers (Cangrejeros) baseball team. She is negotiating to bring the Crabbers as well as the San Juan Senators teams back to play in Bithorn Stadium for winter 2010.
In February 2010, Batista's department hosted the Latin American Regional Special Olympics
Special Olympics
Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and competitions to more than 3.1 million athletes in 175 countries....
, a two-week long event that included over one thousand young athletes, and the presence of Dr. Timothy Shriver, CEO of the worldwide organization, and Martín Torrijos
Martín Torrijos
Martín Erasto Torrijos Espino is a Panamanian politician and the former President of the Republic of Panama.Torrijos was elected President on May 2, 2004...
, former president of Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
. Santini and Batista traveled to Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
later that year to put in a bid for San Juan to host the 2015 worldwide Special Olympics.
Prior to Batista's career as a sports administrator, she was a competitive swimmer, having represented Puerto Rico in several Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
n and Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
Games, Pan American Games
Pan American Games
The Pan-American or Pan American Games are a major event in the Americas featuring summer and formerly winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Pan American Games are the second largest multi-sport event after the Summer Olympics...
and the 1988 Olympics
1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...
in Seoul, South Korea. After graduating from Puerto Rico's Sacred Heart University
Sacred Heart University
Sacred Heart University is a Roman Catholic university located in suburban Fairfield, Connecticut, United States. Sacred Heart was founded in 1963 by the Most Reverend Walter W. Curtis, Bishop of the Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut. Sacred Heart University was the first Catholic university in...
in 1994, she served as the Sports Director of Puerto Rico's Department of Education Sports Magnet School, located at the Puerto Rico Olympic Committee
Puerto Rico Olympic Committee
The Puerto Rico Olympic Committee ) is the National Olympic Committee for Puerto Rico. It oversees Olympic-sports in Puerto Rico, and selects the Olympic team which represents the island...
training facilities in Salinas, Puerto Rico
Salinas, Puerto Rico
Salinas is a small municipality in the southern part of Puerto Rico located in the southern coast of the island, south of Aibonito and Cayey; southeast of Coamo, east of Santa Isabel; and west of Guayama...
, obtained an MBA and began teaching business administration at Turabo University
Turabo University
University of Turabo is a private, non-profit, and secular university system in Puerto Rico.-Accreditations:*Council on Higher Education of Puerto Rico *Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools*US Department of Education...
in Caguas, Puerto Rico
Caguas, Puerto Rico
Caguas , founded in 1775, is a city and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range of Puerto Rico, south of San Juan and Trujillo Alto, west of Gurabo and San Lorenzo, east of Aguas Buenas, Cidra, and Cayey....
. She is the daughter of former Superior Court Judge Elpidio Batista, who served a stint as President of the Puerto Rico Baseball Winter League, is separated from Puerto Rico Secretary of State
Secretary of State
Secretary of State or State Secretary is a commonly used title for a senior or mid-level post in governments around the world. The role varies between countries, and in some cases there are multiple Secretaries of State in the Government....
Kenneth McClintock
Kenneth McClintock
Kenneth D. McClintock-Hernández is the current Secretary of State of Puerto Rico. Mr. McClintock served as co-chair of Hillary Clinton presidential campaign's National Hispanic Leadership Council in 2008, co-chaired Clinton's successful Puerto Rico primary campaign that year and served as the...
and is the mother of two teenagers.
Sources
- http://www.nba.com/bwb/bwb_pr.html
- http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/sports/15719220.htm
- http://www.juventudboricua.com/foro/boricua-sports/3378-entrenar-en-la-isla.html
- http://www.sanjuancapital.com/noticiasread.asp?r=53833ISB3D
- http://www.sanjuancapital.com/noticiasread.asp?r=53866ISB4A
- http://www.thesanjuannews.com/detalleNoticias.php?newsID=393
- http://www.clasicomundial.com/news/news.php?id=697
- http://foro.univision.com/univision/board/message?board.id=75359689241&message.id=598023
- http://espndeportes-att.espn.go.com/news/story?id=414995
- http://www.terra.com/deportes/articulo/html/fox228633.htm