Icons Welcome Beyond Sport To Philadelphia
The Beyond Sport Summit & Awards 2013 will be held this year in Philadelphia, following in the footsteps of London, UK in 2012 and Cape Town, South Africa in 2011.
Some of Philadelphia’s biggest sporting names launched the event on Wednesday, which saw 13-season Eagles veteran Brian Dawkins and Philadelphia 76er great and NBA Global Ambassador Dikembe Mutombo join Mayor Nutter, Christina Weiss Lurie, President, Eagles Youth Partnership, Don Smolenski, President, Philadelphia Eagles and Beyond Sport Founder Nick Keller to make the announcement,
The largest global gathering in sport and development will now come to Philadelphia 9th to 11th September 2013.
The Beyond Sport Summit was most recently staged in July 2012 in London, just days before last summer’s Olympic Games. It saw sporting luminaries such as Muhammad Ali, David Beckham, Michelle Kwan and Michael Johnson join teams, leagues, corporates and development projects from around the world to explore the power of sport to positively impact society.
A similar mixture of star power and business influence is expected to gather in Philadelphia in September. Beyond Sport’s Ambassadors include some of the biggest stars in world sport, chaired by former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and under the Patronage of Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
The Philadelphia Eagles, global Beyond Sport Award winners in 2011 for the franchise’s work in the community, have played a key role in bringing the unique event to the city. It is also supported by the Phillies, Flyers, 76ers and Union, the Philadelphia Sports Congress and by the Mayor’s Office. The Beyond Sport movement is backed by each of the major leagues – the National Hockey League (NHL), National Football League (NFL), National Basketball Association (NBA), Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), NASCAR, and Major League Soccer (MLS).
‘Sports bring people together, and bringing people together is what the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection is all about,’ said Mayor Nutter. ‘The reason Philadelphia and its professional sports franchises worked so hard to bring Beyond Sport here is our belief that athletics has a tremendously positive influence on communities, and we want to play a role in that. Philadelphia is honoured to be among some of the most vibrant cities in the world by playing host to this prestigious event.’
Don Smolenski commented: ‘Winning a Beyond Sport Award was an incredible moment for the Eagles and we are thrilled to be bringing this event to Philadelphia. The Eagles as a team sit at the heart of the Philadelphia community and we are very proud of our work in the community. We look forward to showing it off on a global stage.’
Beyond Sport Founder Nick Keller added: ‘We are incredibly excited to be bringing the Beyond Sport Summit & Awards to Philadelphia. This city places sport at the center of its identity and has long experience of using sport to enrich the community.’
Beyond Sport’s Global Partners are Barclays, TIME and Unicef. Its Presenting Partners include P&G, Fortune, The Russell Partnership, NRG, ARAMARK, Loews and Lincoln Financial Group. The Philadelphia Summit’s Host Supporters include Wharton Business School, US Airways, Philadelphia Sports Congress and the City of Philadelphia.
