SILVER SPRING, MD (October 19, 2021) – The Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Stan Jurga Jr. to fill the open sporting goods industry seat on the Board of Directors of the National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment (NOCSAE). Mr. Jurga is Vice President of Product Development for All-Star Sporting Goods, a brand specializing in baseball and softball protective hardgoods.
NOCSAE is responsible for setting standards for equipment in football, baseball, softball, equestrian (polo), lacrosse, field hockey, soccer, and ice hockey. SFIA was instrumental in the organization’s formation in 1970, and with that, fills two seats on the Board of Directors, currently at 19 members. Mr. Jurga joins Gregg Hartley, SFIA’s lead consultant on standards, who currently serves as NOCSAE Vice President.
Mr. Jurga’s roll in the sports industry is ideal for this position. With one foot in the test lab and one foot on the field, he splits time between developing new products with his design and engineering team, while also being the main point of contact with the professional athletes who choose to wear All-Star products. Mr. Jurga is often found in All-Star’s in-house NOCSAE impact test lab by morning, and later that afternoon, seen at Fenway Park showing pro players the latest prototype and listening to their insight.
He graduated from Harvard University with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering Sciences and was a staff researcher at the Harvard Robotics Lab. He then completed a Master’s in Mechanical Engineering at MIT. After managing a biotech startup, Mr. Jurga officially joined Allstar in 2005.
“Our responsibility as Board members with NOCSAE is to represent the licensee’s interest in the development, revision or implementation of standards to ensure they meet the highest thresholds of technical expertise and are equitable to licensees, said Tom Cove, President & CEO, SFIA.
“Stan’s experience and expertise as an unparalleled engineer is key to ensuring standards are on target and appropriate, and he has a great rapport with the trendsetters in the industry; bringing innovative, real-play tested experience to the table.”
Mr. Jurga replaces former Board member Shaun Gilday, previously the Senior Manager of Innovation for Wilson Sporting Goods, who served on the Board for four years. SFIA greatly appreciates Shaun’s commitment to the industry and the insights he brought to the NOCSAE Board.
You can learn more about NOCSAE and the Board of Directors at NOCSAE.org.
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ABOUT SFIA: The Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA), the #1 source for sport and fitness research, is the leading global trade association of manufacturers, retailers, and marketers in the sports products and fitness industry. SFIA seeks to promote sports and fitness participation, as well as industry vitality through research, thought leadership, public affairs, industry affairs and member services. For more information, please visit www.sfia.org.