BRADENTON, Fla., Nov. 03, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IMG Academy, the world’s leading sports education brand, today announced the inaugural Youth Character in Sport Global Conference, a three-day event bringing athletic directors, coaches, educators, and sport leaders to its Bradenton, Florida campus. The conference will take place June 8-10, 2027, and focus on how character development and athletic performance reinforce each other.
Hosted by IMG Academy’s Character and Leadership team and partnered with Elevate by IMG Academy, the conference will feature former Olympians, world champions, renowned character leaders and IMG Academy sport directors, academic leaders and sports science staff. Attendees will leave with practical ideas they can take back to their own teams, schools, and programs.
“Character and performance are not competing priorities. They grow together,” said Mike Milliron, President, IMG Academy Campus. “At IMG Academy, that belief shapes our programming every single day, from the classroom to the fields to our residence halls. We’re honored to open our campus and share what we’ve learned with the people who shape young athletes in their own communities.”
Every keynote and Learning Lab that will be presented is built on frameworks from IMG Academy’s Character and Leadership program. Together, they give coaches and educators a shared language for developing character and performance side by side.
Four Ideas That Run Through Every Session
- Lead with purpose. Know your “why” and inspire others. Learn how a clear purpose shapes the way you coach, lead, and show up for your athletes.
- Live the values. See integrity, humility, and courage in action, and what it looks like to do the right thing when it’s hard and when no one is watching.
- Build relationships. Invest in people and strengthen trust. Take home practical ways to build a team culture where athletes feel known and supported.
- Make an impact. Use your influence to make a difference, and develop athletes who lead well and serve others, in sport and beyond.
An Immersive Campus Experience
Keynotes and Learning Labs are hosted at Legacy Hotel at IMG Academy, steps from campus. In the evenings, the conference moves onto campus for hands-on experiences, giving attendees a firsthand look at the environment where student-athletes train, learn and grow.
The conference reflects IMG Academy’s intentional focus on the whole student-athlete. Across its campus and online offerings, IMG Academy integrates academics, athletics, and critical life skills, using sport as a platform for developing leadership, resilience, confidence, and discipline.
“Our model treats sport as a platform for life,” said Dr. Pete Paciorek, Director of Character & Leadership Development at IMG Academy “Our student-athletes are building character in the same moments they’re building skills, and we want coaches and educators everywhere to leave this conference with tools to do the same.”
Early bird pricing of $1,499 is now available for the three-day event. Tickets can be purchased here.
Quote Sheet
- Dr. Marvin Berkowitz, Co-Executive Director, Center for Character and Citizenship & Professor Emeritus at University of Missouri, St. Louis: "IMG Academy has long been the leader in youth sports preparation and physical development. Now it is also becoming a leader in character development in youth sports, in large part thanks to Dr. Pete Paciorek, the Director of Character and Leadership at IMG Academy, and my former doctoral student. As a former professional baseball player and already an accomplished scholar in youth sports and character, he has an institutional mission and an impressive set of colleagues who are creating a model for all who work in the field of youth sports. This conference offers the opportunity to learn from them and from outside experts, and to work together to design how to adapt best practices to your own context."
- Dr. Kristen Pelster, Chief Programming Officer, CharacterPlus: "Sport is one of the most powerful environments for developing character in young people. Every practice, competition, and team interaction creates opportunities to cultivate integrity, respect, responsibility, perseverance, and teamwork. When character development is intentionally woven into athletics, coaches and leaders shape not only better athletes, but stronger leaders and individuals who positively impact their teams, schools, and communities. The Youth Character in Sports Global Conference at IMG Academy is an invaluable opportunity for leaders in sport and education to come together, advance the field of character development in athletics, and equip themselves with the tools to help young people flourish both on and off the field.”
- Brent Richard, CEO, IMG Academy: “Sport is the best platform for the development of life skills. At IMG Academy, we see it every day: a student-athlete is building character in the same moments they are building skill. Coaches and educators shape that more than anyone, and too many of them are doing it without a shared playbook. This conference is our chance to open our campus, share what we’ve learned, and learn from others who care about this as much as we do. When we get character and performance right together, we change more than games. We change lives.”
- Dr. Michael Sagas, Dean and Professor of College of Hospitality, Tourism, and Sport Management at the University of South Carolina: "At a time when youth and collegiate sports are increasingly dominated by commercial pressures and scoreboard outcomes, intentional character education has never been more important. The Youth Character in Sport Global Conference at IMG Academy fills a critical void by equipping coaches and sport leaders with evidence-based frameworks to develop the whole person alongside the elite competitor. Dr. Pete Paciorek and the Character & Leadership Development team at IMG Academy are setting the global standard for how we cultivate purpose, integrity, and lifelong leadership through sport."
- Dr. David Light Shields, Co-Author of True Competition: "The Youth Character in Sport Global Conference at IMG Academy offers an extraordinary opportunity for coaches, educators and sports leaders to explore how athletic excellence and character development can work together to help young people flourish both on and off the field. Sport has extraordinary potential to shape who young people become, not just how they perform, and IMG Academy's Character & Leadership program is a world leader in the field."
About IMG Academy
IMG Academy is the world’s leading sports education brand, providing a holistic education model that empowers student-athletes to win their future, preparing them for college and for life. On its world-renowned campus in Bradenton, Fla., student-athletes live, learn and train in a boarding school environment that combines rigorous academics, elite coaching and intentionally taught life skills. Camps open the experience to youth athletes. IMG Academy also makes elements of its proprietary curriculum in athletic performance, personal development and college recruiting available digitally through IMG Academy+, NCSA College Recruiting by IMG Academy and SportsRecruits. Together, these campus and online experiences create growth opportunities for youth athletes at every stage of their developmental journey. To learn more, visit www.imgacademy.com.
About Elevate by IMG Academy
Elevate by IMG Academy is an education and performance solution that equips K-12 schools, colleges, universities, and organizations with IMG Academy’s proven methodology for developing mindset, leadership, wellness, and life skills that drive excellence in sport and in life. Built on decades of experience developing student-athletes at the highest level, Elevate brings IMG Academy’s holistic performance system beyond its Bradenton, Fla., campus and into schools and institutions around the world, combining scalable digital platforms with immersive, onsite experiences.
Media Contact: Mike Lovecchio SVP, Communications 941-577-2961 mike.lovecchio@imgacademy.com
