FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
                                                         

Contacts:  Pete Winton, Lee County Administration (239)335-2777

                Jeff Mielke, Lee County Sports Authority (239)344-5201

LEE COUNTY HOSTS BASEBALL HALL OF FAMER STAN MUSIAL AT INAUGURAL AFLAC ALL-AMERICAN HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL AWARDS DINNER

FORT MYERS, FL (August 14, 2003) - Baseball legend Stan "The Man" Musial will be in Lee County as the keynote speaker for the inaugural AFLAC All-American Awards Dinner at Sanibel Harbour on Friday, Aug. 22 at 7:00 pm.  Tickets are available to the general public for $50 and are available by calling Jeff Mielke at the Lee County Sports Authority at 239-344-5201 by August 19th.

The AFLAC All-American High School Baseball Classic will be played at the Lee County Sports Complex in Fort Myers, Aug. 23 at 7:00 p.m. This tournament attracts the nation's most talented high school baseball players.

Recognized as one of the top five greatest living ballplayers, Musial is a Baseball Hall of Famer, a three-time World Series Champion, a three-time MVP, and an All-Century Team member.  He will serve as ambassador to the event.

Net proceeds from the event will benefit Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida.  Sports America, Inc., an event management and sports marketing corporation based in  Rockville, MD, and AFLAC, a worldwide writer of insurance products, are the major sponsors of the event.  Miracle Professional Baseball and the Lee County Sports Authority are local sponsors.

The AFLAC All-American High School Baseball Classic is endorsed by many of the game's pillars, including Major League Baseball.

"Major League Baseball is happy to support this effort to promote high school baseball," said Sandy Alderson, executive vice president of Baseball Operations for Major League Baseball.  "We look forward to helping grow this game into the pre-eminent event of its type."  

The event will feature the top rising high school senior baseball players in the country, as determined by official selection partners, Baseball America and Perfect Game.  Fox Sports Net will televise the event nationally on Sept. 20.

 
"The AFLAC All-American High School Baseball Classic is an important event for our area," said Jeff Mielke, executive director of the Lee County Sports Authority.  "In addition to supporting research and treatment of pediatric cancer locally, this amateur baseball event will showcase our destination to a huge audience."