May 17, 2022 – United Soccer League Championship (USL) – Oakland Roots News Release
Oakland Roots is thrilled to highlight the work of Mental Health and Sport Performance Coach, Lisa Bonta Sumii, LCSW, CSW. May is Mental Health Awareness Month and the Oakland Roots want to share the value that Bonta Sumii brings as a member of the Technical Team and a fundamental part of the Oakland Roots’ Nurtured Roots program. Bonta Sumii joined Oakland Roots staff at the beginning of the 2021 USL Championship season, becoming one of few professional sports teams with a mental health expert on the coaching staff.
“Lisa is a key piece to my staff and making sure my guys are 100% ready to train, compete and also in their personal life. The holistic approach is key with athletes and Lisa gives us the ability to have that,” said Head Coach Juan Guerra. “From the moment I met Lisa to now having worked alongside her for a couple of months I can’t begin to explain the value she brings to my staff, our players and this organization.”
With the Oakland Roots, Bonta Sumii prioritizes and tends to players mental health, which includes caring for their emotional, psychological, and social well-being. She also helps uplift the mental performance side of the team by training players on mental tools that lead to the development of mental skills. She has become someone sought after for panels, speaking engagements, and clinics around the country, as one of the leading athlete mental health experts, since joining the Oakland Roots. Most recently, Bonta Sumii spoke at TedxWilmington on the intersection of race, mental health, and sport.
“Athlete mental health should be prioritized just as much as physical health,” says Bonta Sumii. “Coach Juan Guerra shares this same value and perspective and supports the work I do as a regular presence at the training facility where I hold individual, small group, and team sessions, as well as the opportunity to observe training.”
Bonta Sumii came to the…