Seahawk News
For immediate release
September 23, 2009
Contact: Pete DiVito, 401-341-2461
Bonci to Speak to SRU Student-Athletes
NEWPORT, R.I. - Leslie J. Bonci, the director of sports medicine nutrition for the Department of Orthopedic Surgery and the Center for Sports Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), will be speaking to Salve Regina University student-athletes about nutrition on Thursday, Sept. 24 at 8 a.m. at Bazarsky Lecture Hall.
Bonci also serves as the sports dietitian for the University of Pittsburghs department of athletics and is a nutrition consultant for the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Pittsburgh Pirates, Pittsburgh Riverhounds professional soccer team, Cincinnati Reds, and Toronto Blue Jays. In addition, she is the company nutritionist for the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and a sports nutrition consultant to numerous high schools and universities. She is also the consulting nutritionist for the US Olympic Canoe and Kayak Team.
"We are extremely thrilled that Leslie has chosen to visit our University and address our student-athletes," said Salve Regina University head athletic trainer Kerri Dupre. "This speaker will educate out student-athletes on proper nutrition for sports performance. She was selected to speak to our students because of her diverse background in several areas of sports nutrition, including weight management, supplement use, and performance eating."
While this meeting is mandatory for all Seahawk student-athletes, it is also open all members of the Salve Regina University community.
"We are excited to have someone with Leslie Bonci's stature come and speak and share her knowledge with our student-athletes," said assistant athletic director Lisa Yenush. "She has a lot of information that will not only be insightful for the student-athletes but things they can implement right away into their daily routines and which they can hopefully reap the benefits from."
A popular former national media spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association for eight-years, Bonci is a frequent guest on local and national TV news programs, a commonly-quoted nutrition expert in newspapers and magazines nationwide, and serves on the editorial advisory board of Fitness magazine. She has her own weekly segment, "The Winning Plate," on Pittsburgh's KDKA-TV's Pittsburgh Today Live show, and she has done satellite media tours on behalf of Heinz, Gatorade, and the California Dried Plum Board. Her expertise in the areas of sports nutrition, weight management, eating disorders and digestive health resulted in two book publications: "Total Fitness for Women," which she co-authored, and the "American Dietetic Association Guide to Better Digestion," of which she was sole author. An avid long-distance runner, she has written chapters in several sports medicine textbooks and writes regularly for the Training and Conditioning Journal.
Bonci is a registered dietitian and Pennsylvania-licensed dietitian/nutritionist with a bachelor's degree in biopsychology from Vassar College and a master's degree in public health from the University of Pittsburgh.
For more information, please contact the Salve Regina University athletic department at (401) 341-2269.
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