September 29, 2000: Volume 50, Number 4

New AD Val Belmonte Returns to 'True Passion'

In his coaching days, Val Belmonte would leave his office every afternoon at 3 to shower, shave, comb his hair and put on sweats for hockey practice.

"My wife thought I was insane," recalls Belmonte, now in his third month as Union's director of athletics. "But I was just getting ready for the most important part of my day. I wanted to look and feel my best for my athletes."

So it shouldn't be surprising that Belmonte's career path— with stops along the way at USA Hockey and the U.S. Olympic Committee — would eventually bring him back to collegiate athletics. "I came to realize that my true passion lies working within the collegiate athletic community, influencing student-athletes' lives in and beyond the spectrum of sports," he said.

The words of Belmonte's mantra crawl across his computer's screensaver: "Achieving Sustained Competitive Excellence." But he is quick to point out that his philosophy is not one of winning at all costs. "Union athletics' pursuit of success should not come at the expense of the College's values," he said. "The College must be ... a place where student-athletes come to compete, improve themselves, and prepare for life's greater challenges.

"Our immediate concern is to reorganize the department, creating an environment for our student-athletes and coaches to reach their optimal level of performance on and off the field," Belmonte said. "We also need to make plans to improve our athletic facilities.

"We want an athletics program that is competitively successful, while operating ethically, and that is academically superior," he said.

"It will take hard work, continually educating our coaches, and strong financial support." Noting that a number of Div. III athletics programs are relying on major fundraising, he said, "We must now become financially competitive with the rest of our competition."

Most recently, Belmonte was director of USA Hockey's coaching program, a position he held since 1991. Previously, he served as assistant athletic director and head hockey coach at the University of Illinois-Chicago and assistant hockey coach at Harvard University. He received his B.S. from the University of Illinois-Chicago and an M.Ed. from the University of North Dakota. He is a member of the U.S. Olympic Committee's coaching committee, working with U.S. coaches in a variety of Olympic sports. He is the author or editor of publications including Coaches Ethics Code and a number of hockey coaching manuals.

He and his wife, Rita, have two grown sons, Tony and Michael.

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