Celebrate the 39th Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner 

On Monday, September 30th, the 39^th Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner presented by Tudor Group and the Mack family, to benefit The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis, will honor nine of the world’s most accomplished athletes. The distinguished group includes Hall of Famers, world champions, Olympic gold medalists, and other top winners coming together for one night in an unprecedented effort to raise awareness and millions of dollars for research and treatment of paralysis and other neurological diseases and disorders including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, MS, ALS, and stroke. For tickets and tables, click here. 

Honorees at this year’s 39^th Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner, on Monday, Sept. 30 at the New York Hilton Midtown are seven-time Cy Young Award winner and two-time World Series champion Roger Clemens, NFL Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez, NBA champion and Basketball Hall of Famer Gary Payton, seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion and NASCAR Hall of Famer Jimmie Johnson, NHL Hall of Famer and Vezina Trophy winner Henrik Lundqvist, three-time Olympic beach volleyball gold medalist and three-time world champion Kerri Walsh Jennings, Women’s Basketball Hall of Famer and four-time Olympic gold medalist Tamika Catchings, three-time Kentucky Derby winner and National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame member Johnny Velazquez, International Tennis Hall of Famer and 14-time Grand Slam Champion Arantxa Sánchez Vicario.

In addition, beloved sports agent, entrepreneur and best-selling author Leigh Steinberg will receive The Buoniconti Fund Humanitarian Award, and distinguished philanthropist Ray Chambers, World Health Organization Ambassador for Global Strategy, will be presented with the Christine E. Lynn Champion for A Cure Award at the dinner.

Music icon, philanthropist, eight-time Grammy Award winner and Presidential Medal of Freedom honoree Gloria Estefan will serve as mistress of ceremonies for this high-profile event. Estefan’s connection to The Buoniconti Fund dates back more than three decades, when she suffered a severe spinal cord injury in a tour bus accident. Kool & the Gang, multiple Grammy Award winners and impending 2024 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees, will perform during the evening’s program.

The dinner, presented by Tudor Group and the Mack family, is chaired by Mark Dalton of Tudor Group and co-chaired by Reed Mack and Richard Gray. It benefits The Buoniconti Fund, the fundraising arm of The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis.

“Each year, I am humbled by the sports legends and honorees who continue to join us and stand up for those who can’t. We are honored to recognize this extraordinary lineup of individuals who perform above and beyond, both in and out of their sports arenas. We welcome them to our Buoniconti Fund team,” said Marc Buoniconti, The Buoniconti Fund president, who was paralyzed in a college football game four decades ago. “As we continue to work toward finding a cure for paralysis and other neurological diseases and disorders including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, MS and stroke, we are encouraged to know that this event is helping to accelerate new treatments so that one day soon, the millions living with spinal cord and brain injuries and other neurological injuries can have effective cures.”

“Sports Legends Alumni” include Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali, Jack Nicklaus, Wayne Gretzky, Phil Collins, Andre Agassi, David Ortiz, Simone Biles, Willie Mays, Buzz Aldrin, Cal Ripken Jr., Tommy Lee Jones, Mia Hamm, Magic Johnson, Dorothy Hamill, Dwyane Wade, Chris Evert, Helio Castroneves, Dan Marino, Joe DiMaggio, Mario Andretti, Dr. Maya Angelou, John McEnroe, Jorge Posada, Bob Costas, John Elway, Pat Riley, Tony Hawk, Christian Slater, Julio Iglesias, Lindsey Vonn, Kelly Slater, Joe Torre, Jerry Rice and Shaquille O’Neal and many other athletes and heroes – all of whom recognize that paralyzing injuries can and do occur in the pursuit of athletic careers and everyday lives.

The dinner annually attracts a veritable “Who’s Who” of more than 1,000 sports legends, celebrities, philanthropists, corporate leaders and other influential New Yorkers. The evening includes a spectacular auction featuring one-of-a-kind sports memorabilia items, magnificent jewelry and much more. 

The Buoniconti Fund is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to raise funds and awareness to help The Miami Project achieve its primary focus: to repair and restore function to the injured and diseased nervous system, thereby improving the quality of life of patients throughout the world. Research at The Miami Project has changed the landscape of knowledge and therapeutic strategies for spinal cord injury and traumatic brain injury. The Miami Project, a Center of Excellence at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, is considered one of the premier research programs conducting cutting-edge discovery, translational and clinical investigations. Researchers are developing new treatments for traumatic spinal cord and brain injury, peripheral nerve injury and neurodegenerative disorders including Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, ALS, and Alzheimer’s disease.

Since its inception in 1985, the Great Sports Legends Dinner has honored more than 400 sports legends and honorees and has raised millions for The Miami Project’s spinal cord injury research programs. The Miami Project and The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis remain committed to finding a cure for paralysis resulting from spinal cord injury and to seeing millions worldwide walk again.

The 39^th Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner begins at 5:30 p.m. at the New York Hilton Midtown, 1335 Sixth Ave. Purchase tickets and tables by contacting Stephanie Sayfie Aagaard at 305-243-4656, or [email protected], or by visiting:  https://bit.ly/GSLD24 

For more information about The Buoniconti Fund, please visit: www.TheBuonicontiFund.com. Take part in the conversation on social media, by following us on Facebook @cureparalysis, Instagram @TheMiamiProject or on X @BuonicontiFund and using the hashtags: #SportsLegendsDinner #CureParalysis #StandUpForThoseWhoCant.