DENVER — The CHSAA “Championship Saturday” games, presented by The Colorado Sports Hall of Fame (CSHOF), continues to be successful with consistently large and enthusiastic attendance.

The Colorado High School Class 5A and 4A State Championship Games held at Broncos Stadium at Mile High on Saturday, Dec. 1, were watched by a crowd of nearly 11,000 high school football fans. This marked the 14th consecutive year for both of the state’s big school title games taking place at the Broncos’ home field.

The Valor Christian HS Eagles defeated the Cherry Creek HS Bruins 24-14 to win the Class 5A title. The Loveland HS Indians defeated the Skyline HS Falcons by a 62-14 margin to claim the Class 4A title.

“Speaking on behalf of the CSHOF Board of Directors, we are thrilled by the continued growth of this event, which has featured great games, tremendous enthusiasm and the opportunity for The Colorado Sports Hall of Fame to make significant monetary and in-kind contributions over the past 14 years to 30 youth sports organizations in Colorado,” said CSHOF President & CEO Tom Lawrence.

Over the past fourteen years, about $1,800,000 has been donated by The Colorado Sports Hall of Fame to the Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) and other charitable youth sports organizations like Special Olympics Colorado, National Sports Center for the Disabled, Sportswomen of Colorado, Colorado Golf Foundation and Gold Crown Foundation. For a full list of youth sports organization beneficiaries, please visit www.coloradosports.org.

“We certainly look forward to continuing this event through 2022 and hopefully even longer,” Lawrence said. “It is gratifying to all involved (The CSHOF, Denver Broncos and CHSAA) to be part of something which benefits high school football, youth sports organizations and Colorado’s prep students and fans to this high level.”

The Presenting Sponsor for CHSAA “Championship Saturday” is The Colorado Sports Hall of Fame. Legacy Sponsors are the Denver Broncos and Gatorade.

For more information about The Colorado Sports Hall of Fame, a 501-(c)(3) charitable non-profit organization, established in 1964, please go to www.coloradosports.org, or call 720-258-3536.

The renovations will impact all 16,000 square feet of the largest team Hall of Fame in baseball and will incorporate more technology and historical artifacts into a new design that will better tell the rich and storied history of the Reds.

The museum will reopen in March with a ribbon-cutting ceremony prior to 2019 Reds Opening Day.

“Our design team has been tasked to create an innovative museum experience like no other,” said Rick Walls, Reds Hall of Fame & Museum executive director. “As much as fans have enjoyed our museum since we opened in 2004, I know they will love the ‘new’ museum even more as we celebrate the 150th anniversary of professional baseball in 2019.”

During the renovations, the museum will continue to offer offseason tours of Great American Ball Park along with educational programming and outreach events.

To be part of the 150^th Anniversary Legacy Campaign, visit redsmuseum.org/legacy.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – ProRodeo Hall of Famer Keith Martin, who was inducted as a rodeo notable in 2011, has been named the 2018 Legend of ProRodeo.

Martin will be honored at the 11th annual Wrangler Gold Buckle Gala at the South Point Grand Ballroom in Las Vegas, Dec. 3.

“When you look at the list of people who have made that, you think, ‘Gee-whiz, I’m not in that category,'” said Martin, who served on the ProRodeo Hall of Fame Board of Trustees for more than 10 years. “It just means a lot to me, and to be in the same category with those other folks, I’m happy and humbled more than anything.”

As executive director and chief executive officer of the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, Martin set the bar for all rodeo committees when San Antonio became the first $1 million regular-season rodeo in 2007.

At the same time, he was pushing ProRodeo toward a financially secure future in his role as interim CEO and PRCA Commissioner, which he did free of charge.

“I would fly back and forth and never charged the PRCA a dime for that,” Martin said. “We got things straightened out and money back in the bank (for the PRCA). We had an awful lot of help, it wasn’t a one-man job by any means.”

Martin started with the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo as a volunteer in 1969, joined the executive committee in 1984 and became president in 1989, igniting a period of unprecedented growth and success. San Antonio has been voted the PRCA’s Large Indoor Rodeo Committee of the Year every year since 2005.

“I started when I was 22 years old, and I’m 71 years old now, and I guess it’s because of the way I was raised that I volunteer,” Martin said, adding that he grew up ranching with his family. “It’s a very family-oriented business, families participate and come to the rodeos. It’s a very wholesome and patriotic sport. … Every aspect of it is family oriented, and God knows we need to get back to that.”

In his time on the PRCA Board of Directors and as interim commissioner in 2007-08, Martin assisted the PRCA staff in developing a budgeting system, and also worked to develop communication opportunities among the association’s membership.

The Wrangler Gold Buckle Gala, which benefits the ProRodeo Hall of Fame, begins at 6 p.m. (PT). Tickets go on sale Oct. 1 and can be purchased at www.prorodeohalloffame.com or by calling 719-528-4732.

“I’m excited for the award, but I want to raise money for the Hall, so we need to get people there,” Martin said.

The PRCA, headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colo., is recognized as the unsurpassed leader in sanctioning the sport of professional rodeo. The PRCA’s mission is to unify membership in providing an innovative fan experience, to grow the sport of professional rodeo and provide new expanded opportunities for our membership and sponsors. Since 1986, the PRCA has paid out more than $1 billion in prize money to its contestants. The PRCA offers the best cowboys and the best rodeos; delivering the best fan experience while positively impacting our communities and embracing the spirit of the West. A membership-based organization, the PRCA sanctioned 650 rodeos in 2017, and there are more than 40 million rodeo fans in the U.S. The PRCA televises the sport’s premier events, with the world-renowned Wrangler National Finals Rodeo on CBS Sports Net and streaming on ProRodeoTV.com. The Wrangler Tour, Justin Finale, RAM National Circuit Finals Rodeo and All American ProRodeo Finals also air on CBS Sports Net, and ProRodeoTV.com. PRCA-sanctioned rodeos donate more than $40 million to local and national charities every year. For comprehensive coverage of the cowboy sport, read the ProRodeo Sports News, the official publication of the PRCA, and make sure to check out the digital edition of the PSN. The digital PSN and daily updates of news and results can be found on the PRCA’s official website, www.prorodeo.com.

CambridgeSeven is happy to announce the completion of Phase One of the expansion of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts. The Museum expansion will unfold in three phases that culminate in a grand re-opening in June of 2020. The work entails both architectural modifications throughout the building, as well as a full redesign of the visitor exhibit experience. In the recently-completed Phase I, visitors are launched on a sports museum experience like none other through the dynamic new Tip-Off Pavilion exhibit in the main lobby celebrating stars of the game with unique, interactive lockers and the exciting, updated Nike Theatre featuring an energetic, signature film about the history and impact of the game. Phases Two and Three will focus on the balance of the Hall with a series of galleries that include interactives, artifacts, media and stories about great moments, players, coaches and fans of the game.

Frisco, TX (August 21, 2018) – The National Soccer Hall of Fame and NEC Corporation of America (NEC) today announced a unique, facial recognition-enabled guest experience for visitors to the Hall of Fame which is scheduled to open to the public on October 24, 2018.

Powered by NEC and its NeoFace^® facial recognition software, National Soccer Hall of Fame guests will experience a custom-tailored tour unlike anything they’ve experienced in a sports setting.

“Leveraging NEC’s acclaimed and industry-leading facial recognition technology as the software engine, our aim is to provide the most personalized experience in sports,” said Executive Director of the National Soccer Hall of Fame Djorn Buchholz.

With this partnership, NEC and the National Soccer Hall of Fame are the first to use facial recognition technology to individualize a guest’s experience in a sports and entertainment venue. Guests will benefit from facial recognition the moment they enter the National Soccer Hall of Fame where they will be prompted upon check-in to share their hometown, favorite soccer position, favorite U.S. teams and their level of fandom. Based on that information, digital touch screens, virtual reality and gesture technology inside of the Hall of Fame will recognize guests using the NeoFace® facial recognition software which will personalize each visit based on their individual preference.

”We are honored and excited to be working with the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Frisco, Texas,” said Mark Ikeno, President and CEO of NEC Corporation of America. “With the opening of the Hall of Fame, soccer fans will be able to experience their favorite teams, players and moments in soccer history by just walking up to the various exhibits after registering with the system. We believe this experience is unique in the sports world.”

NEC’s facial recognition solutions were ranked number one in performance tests by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology. It has been used by the LPGA and will be used in Tokyo for the 2020 Olympic Games.

NEC serves as a Signature Partner of the National Soccer Hall of Fame, FC Dallas and Toyota Stadium.

About the National Soccer Hall of Fame
The National Soccer Hall of Fame was originally founded in 1950 by the Philadelphia Old-Timers Association. In 1979, the National Soccer Museum, as a physical entity, was established in Oneonta, NY and was officially recognized as the National Soccer Hall of Fame by the U.S. Soccer Federation in 1983.

In June of 1999, the National Soccer Hall of Fame opened a 30,000 square-foot museum in Oneonta where it housed a collection of more than 80,000 items before closing in February of 2010.

In 2013 FC Dallas owners, Clark and Dan Hunt, launched a campaign to bring the Hall of Fame to Frisco, TX. Their late father, Lamar Hunt, was inducted in the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1982. In 1999, he received the Hall’s highest honor, the Medal of Honor. He remains one of only three individuals to have won the award.

The National Soccer Hall of Fame Weekend presented by Budweiser is October 20-21, 2018 featuring the 2018 Induction Ceremony and a concert by Imagine Dragons on Saturday, October 20 followed by the Hall of Fame game featuring FC Dallas and Sporting Kansas City on Sunday, October 21.

The National Soccer Hall of Fame is scheduled to open to the public on October 24, 2018. For more information, please visit SoccerHOF.com.

About NEC Corporation of America
NEC Corporation of America (NEC) is a leading technology integrator providing solutions that improve the way people work and communicate. NEC delivers integrated Solutions for Society that are aligned with our customers’ priorities to create new value for people, businesses and society, with a special focus on safety, security and efficiency. We deliver one of the industry’s strongest and most innovative portfolios of communications, analytics, security, biometrics and technology solutions that unleash customers’ productivity potential. Through these solutions, NEC combines its best-in-class solutions and technology, and leverages a robust partner ecosystem to solve today’s most complex business problems. NEC Corporation of America is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NEC Corporation, a global technology leader with a presence in 160 countries and $25 billion in revenues. For more information, please visit www.necam.com.

Media Contacts: 
John Wise, Senior Manager of Corporate Communications, NEC Corporation of America – 214-262-6385
Gina Miller, VP of Media & Communications, National Soccer Hall of Fame/FC Dallas– 469-365-0198

Series to Benefit the Pat Summitt Foundation, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame 

SPRINGFIELD, MA – The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced today the renewal of the historic series between the UConn Huskies and the Tennessee Lady Vols, starting in the 2019-20 season. As a longstanding rivalry, the teams consistently met from 1995-2007, but have not faced each other since. Widely regarded as the two most successful women’s programs in the country, UConn and Tennessee account for 19 National Championships, dozens of impact players in the WNBA and many of the sport’s all-time greats. 

“The Basketball Hall of Fame is proud to celebrate all levels of the game for both men and women,” said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. “When it comes to women’s college hoops, there’s no match-up more highly anticipated than that of UConn versus Tennessee. We’re so proud to unite these teams in a contest benefitting great causes and honoring the late Hall of Famer Pat Summitt.” 

As part of the two-year series, UConn will host Tennessee during the 2019-20 season, with a portion of the proceeds benefitting the Pat Summitt Foundation and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. In the 2020-21 season, the Lady Vols will host the Huskies in Knoxville, with a portion of the proceeds again benefitting the Pat Summitt Foundation and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, as well as the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. 

“We are so excited to join UConn for games that will generate incredible interest for women’s basketball and benefit the Pat Summitt Foundation, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame,” Tennessee Head Coach Holly Warlick said. “Basketball fans will be intrigued to watch these two programs meet on the court again, and I know Lady Vols and Huskies fans will be eager to pack arenas, cheer on their teams and make a difference for some very worthy causes, including one bearing the name of my coach, mentor and friend.” 

UConn head Coach Geno Auriemma echoed this by saying, “I am happy to have the Lady Vols back on our schedule and am thrilled that proceeds to our games will benefit such an important endeavor like the Pat Summitt Foundation. I know our fans will be excited to renew the rivalry with Tennessee and expect them to fill the building for some good basketball and a great cause.” 

The games will be televised and supported worldwide by the ESPN family of networks. 

“It is only fitting that this game returns to ESPN,” said Carol Stiff, ESPN vice president of programming and acquisitions. “’For the Good of the Game’ was Pat Summitt’s famous quote back in 1994 when accepting the challenge to travel to Connecticut in January 1995. The two teams faced each other twice that season, with UConn going undefeated and ultimately defeating the Lady Vols to win their first national championship. In those moments, one of the richest rivalries in women’s basketball was born. We look forward to showcasing this event during the annual We Back Pat week.” 

Game dates, ticket information and any ancillary events will be released at a later date. 

About Pat Summitt Foundation: 

The Pat Summitt Foundation, a fund of East Tennessee Foundation, was established by Pat and Tyler Summitt in November 2011. Its mission is to award grants to non-profit organizations that advance research for treatment and a cure, provide support for patients and caregivers, and educate the public about Alzheimer’s disease. In 2015, The Pat Summitt Foundation formed a strategic partnership with The University of Tennessee Medical Center to create The Pat Summitt Clinic. The clinic, which opened in January 2017, greatly improves access to healthcare services for families and patients facing Alzheimer’s disease in a facility created to advance Alzheimer’s research, detection, treatment, and family caregiver support. To learn more, please visit www.patsummitt.org, like the foundation on facebook.com/patsummittfoundation, and follow it on Twitter and Instagram @webackpat. 

About Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame: 

Discover the past, present and future of women’s basketball in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame is the world’s only hall of fame dedicated solely to the accomplishments of women’s basketball. To learn more, please visit www.wbhof.com or www.facebook.com/wbhof, and follow on Twitter and Instagram @wbhof. 

About the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame: 

Located in Springfield, Massachusetts, the city where basketball was invented, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame promotes and preserves the game of basketball at every level – professional, collegiate and high school, for both men and women on the global stage. 

For more information: 

Visit us on the web: www.hoophall.com 

… on Facebook: www.facebook.com/BBHOF 

… on Twitter/Instagram: @hoophall #HOFBenefit 

… or call 1-877-4-HOOPLA