The Home

Depot has established a job opportunities program, where

athletes in training for the Olympics are provided with

steady jobs.

The

security of the paycheck is afforded the athletes, who

also get time off to train for the Olympics. Currently,

Home Depot has 74 athletes employed. Fifty-three of those

are vying for positions on the 2000 U.S. Olympic Team and

an additional seven are hoping to make the 2000 Canadian

Olympic Team. The remaining 14 members are contending for

spots on the winter sports teams.

One of the

Olympic hopefuls is Ebo Elder of Newnan. Elder is hoping

to make a spot on the U.S. Olympic boxing team. He is the

nation's second ranked welterweight boxer. "It's a

huge weight off my shoulders knowing that Home Depot is

behind me 100 percent," said Elder. "I'm able

to work around my training and competition schedule but

my income remains steady." Elder works at The Home

Depot in Newnan in the lumber department.

Since 1994,

The Home Depot has helped more than 130 athletes pursue

their dreams. In the lead up to the Centennial Olympic

Games in Atlanta, The Home Depot employed more than 100

athletes. To date, 54 Home Depot athletes have competed

in the Olympic Games, earning six gold, three silver and

seven bronze medals.

"Much

of our strength comes from the employees who work at The

Home Depot," said Dick Hammill, senior vice

president of marketing and communications. "We

strive to employ people who understand dedication, hard

work and commitment, so it should be no surprise that we

would want America's finest athletes serving our

customers."

The Home

Depot was founded in 1978 in Atlanta and has supported

the Olympic Movement since 1992. The company sponsors

both the U.S. and Canadian Olympic teams as well as their

Winter Olympic hopefuls and the Puerto Rican Olympic

team. Currently, they employ eight Georgia athletes with

Olympic dreams.

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