Seattle Seahawks Host Two Free High-School Girls Flag Football Clinics on Hawaiʻi

The Seattle Seahawks Community team ran two free flag football clinics for high school girls on Hawaiʻi Island, delivering professional coaching and hands-on skills work to students in Hilo and Kailua-Kona. The clinics, held at Waiākea High School in Hilo and Kealakehe High School in Kona from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m., aimed to make the sport more accessible and to strengthen youth athletic pathways for girls across the island.

The Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority announced the clinics on January 29, crediting a partnership with the Hawaiʻi High School Athletic Association and the Hawaiʻi State Department of Education. Caroline Anderson, interim president and CEO of the Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority, said, “We’re proud to partner with the Seattle Seahawks, HHSAA and the Department of Education to bring these flag football clinics to Hawai‘i Island. Partnerships like this reflect the value of bringing meaningful sports experiences directly to young women, where they live and learn — giving them access to professional-level coaching and the opportunity to build skills, confidence and teamwork both on and off the field.”

Both sessions covered the same skills and drills and participants were invited to register for one or both clinics. Registration was free and space was limited; organizers directed interested athletes to the Seahawks community Future of Football flag football registration page. The Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority supplied a promotional photo from the Seahawks’ 2025 Castle High School clinic, credited to the Seattle Seahawks, as context for the outreach work.

Seahawks vice president of community engagement and legends Mario Bailey framed the clinics as part of a broader movement for girls in the sport: “We love what Hawaii is doing with their girls. We’re happy (girls flag football is) sanctioned,” he said. “It’s an Olympic sport in 2028 in LA, and Hawaii seems to be on the doorstep of having maybe an Olympian play the way those girls were out there competing.” The Seahawks also returned to the islands after inaugural camps on Oʻahu in 2025 and have signaled an intent to rotate islands to reach more students.

Kealakehe attendees had the opportunity to meet Seahawks legend Max Unger, and volunteers on site included locals with longstanding youth coaching ties. “It was an honor because his high school coach was I coached him in Pop Warner, and we’re volunteering,” said Fred Lindsey. “And there’s a whole bunch of girls out there, probably about 100 of them. But yeah, it’s a hot day. Good day for girls’ football flag.”

Beyond competition and skill-building, the clinics touch on public health and equity priorities by expanding safe, supervised physical activity and offering pro-level coaching without cost barriers. For Big Island County schools and families, that access can support adolescent mental and physical health, foster social networks, and create pathways to higher competition levels. Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority listed Jill Radke as media contact for the release.

What comes next for local programs will be whether schools and athletic leagues sustain expanded opportunities so girls can keep playing beyond single clinics. For now, Hilo and Kona athletes had two mornings of concentrated training, connection and a visible reminder that island youth are in the conversation as flag football grows nationwide.