Mark Greenwald, US Speedskating Executive Director and a two-time Olympic champion, will be the keynote speaker at the August 4, 2012 graduation ceremony of Ashworth College.

Greenwald competed in the both the 1988 and 1992 Olympic Winter Games as a member of the U.S. Long Track Speed Skating Team, earning a top-ten finish in the 5000m event in 1988.  He has served in the role of a competitive athlete, a past US Speedskating Board Member and United States Olympic Committee Athlete Advisory Council representative (alt.), volunteer, coach, administrator and sport leader with 33 years of involvement in speed skating in both the United States and Canada.

Photo credit: Tom DiNardo/US Speedskating

His educational background includes both an undergraduate and a master's degree in Kinesiology; Coaching Course Conductor's Certification roles in the U.S. and Canada; and having served on a variety of high performance sport committees and associations.  He has a proven track record of success as an architect in building teams that help high performance athletes to medal winning performances, contributing to over 20 Olympic medals won by athletes from sport programs under his direction.

“Getting a world-class education at Ashworth College is the academic equivalent of attaining world-class athletic performance. Both achievements require hard work, dedication and persistence to carry on despite setbacks. Every Ashworth College graduate deserves to be recognized for their proud accomplishment of academic excellence, which gives them the competitive edge in their careers and in life. And every graduate in attendance will stand as an inspiration to others who are striving to better themselves through online learning, too.”