San Jose Sports Hall of Fame to Announce Class of 2021 Inductees During Broadcast of “Valley of Champions”

San Jose, CA (November 23, 2020) – The San Jose Sports Hall of Fame will announce its Class of 2021 Inductees during the television broadcast of Valley of Champions, a half-hour show about the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame that will air Tuesday night, November 24, 2020 at 8 p.m. on the regional sports channel NBC Sports Bay Area.

Hosted by Randy Hahn, local broadcaster and Voice of the San Jose Sharks, Valley of Champions delves into the historical and cultural relevance of the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame while also spotlighting the achievements
and contributions of some of the remarkable individuals who are enshrined in the Hall. Joining Hahn to help tell
the story of the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame are Inductees Roger Maltbie (Class of 2012), Jeff Garcia (Class of
2015), Lucy Wedemeyer (inaugural Class of 1995), and Kristi Yamaguchi (Class of 2011).

Heritage Bank of Commerce is the presenting sponsor of Valley of Champions. Additional financial support to produce the show was provided by The Olander Company, March Development Company, Johanson & Yau, the Steve Hallgrimson Foundation, Ponderosa Homes and Bill & Connie Ring. The San Jose Sports Authority, the nonprofit sports marketing arm for the City of San Jose oversaw the project; local sportswriters Mark Purdy and Dan Brown wrote the script, Justin Allegri as the voice and Atomic Productions, Inc., produced the program.

Valley of Champions is segmented and organized around four archetypes – Innovators, Pioneers, Growers and Ambassadors – that dovetail with the industries and personality traits for which the South Bay has become renowned. The previously mentioned inductees – Garcia, Maltbie, Wedemeyer and Yamaguchi – introduce the featured archetypes. Roger Maltbie, for example, introduces the segment on Innovators, which examines the contributions of Bill Walsh, Peter Ueberroth, Seana Hogan and George Gund. (A complete list of the inductees profiled in Valley of Champions follows.)

Now in its 25th year, the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame serves as both a historical record of sports achievement in the South Bay and an enduring source of civic pride. To date, the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame has inducted 114
individuals who either developed their skills, played, or coached in San Jose or Santa Clara County and/or
contributed in an extraordinary way to the greater San Jose community in a sports-related program or project.

The San Jose Sports Hall of Fame is overseen by a Board of Directors comprised of civic, sports, media and
business leaders who volunteer their time to research, nominate and name the incoming class of inductees as
well as to organize the annual Induction Ceremony and Dinner that is usually held in November at SAP Center of
San Jose. Due to the current COVID-19 restrictions, the Board of Directors elected to forgo the festivities in 2020
to focus instead on the Class of 2021 as well as to produce Valley of Champions.

The Class of 2021 Inductees remains strictly embargoed until the announcement is made at the conclusion of
the Valley of Champions broadcast.

About the San Jose Sports Authority (www.sjsa.org)

The San Jose Sports Authority is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization whose mission is to increase the City of San Jose’s economic development, visibility, and civic pride through sports. Serving as the City’s sports commission since its inception in 1991, the Sports Authority has provided leadership and support to attract or host hundreds of sporting events in San Jose and the South Bay. The Sports Authority also supports and
operates community, youth, and amateur sports programs, including the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame and
REACH Youth Scholarship Program.

Links for Valley of Champions & the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame
• Valley of Champions Trailer – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rk3p0EAHmeM
• SJSHOF Board of Directors – https://sjsa.org/hof/board/
• Complete List of SJSHOF Inductees (1995 – 2019) – https://sjsa.org/hof/inductees/

SJSHOF on Social Media
• Facebook – @SanJoseSportsHallofFame
• Twitter – @SJSHOF
• Instagram – @sanjosesports (page is for both SJSA & SJSHOF)

SJSA on Social Media
• Facebook – @sjsauthority
• Twitter – @sjsauthority
• Instagram – @sanjosesports (page is for both SJSA & SJSHOF)
• LinkedIn – San Jose Sports Authority
• YouTube – San Jose Sports Authority

SJSHOF Inductees Profiled in Valley of Champions (listed alphabetically within each featured archetype)

Innovators
• Segment introduced by Roger Matlbie, Class of 2012
• George Gund, Class of 2008
• Seana Hogan, Class of 2019
• Peter Ueberroth, Class of 2011
• Bill Walsh, Class of 1998

Pioneers
• Segment introduced by Jeff Garcia, Class of 2015
• John Carlos, Class of 2015
• Donna de Varona, inaugural Class of 1995
• Willy T. Ribbs, Class of 2012
• Tommie Smith, Class of 1997
• Yosh Uchida, Class of 1996

Growers
• Segment introduced by Lucy Wedemeyer, inaugural Class of 1995
(with late husband Charlie Wedemeyer)
• Juli Inkster, Class of 2019
• Carney Lansford, Class of 2002
• Dave Righetti, Class of 2001
• Pat Tillman, Class of 2004
• Tara VanDerveer, Class of 2013

Ambassadors
• Segment introduced by Kristi Yamaguchi, Class of 2011
• Brian Boitano, Class of 2007
• Brandi Chastain, Class of 2012
• Peggy Fleming, Class of 1995
• George Haines, Class of 1995
• Arturs Irbe, Class of 2010
• Evgeni Nabakov, Class of 2018
• Owen Nolan, Class of 2013
• Mark Spitz, Class of 2007