Peter Ueberroth Honored For Lifetime Achievements

New York, N.Y.-----Former San Jose State water polo team captain Peter Ueberroth, a leader in the Olympic movement for more than 25 years and a former commissioner of Major League Baseball, was honored recently with the 2009 Lifetime Achievement Award by the SportsBusiness Journal and SportsBusiness Daily. 

Ueberroth was recognized as part of the Sports Business Awards program, presented by Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Journal and SportsBusiness Daily, the two leading publications on the business of sports. The Sports Business Awards recognize excellence and outstanding achievement in the sports industry for 2008.

THREE DECADES IN THE SPORTS FOREFRONT

Ueberroth has been deeply involved in the business of sports since he was chosen to lead the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.  That effort brought him global recognition, as Ueberroth virtually re-invented the Games. He developed a new sponsorship model, introduced the torch relay and re-negotiated media rights to stage the first privately funded and profitable Olympics. His success earned him the honor of Time magazine’s Man of the Year and led Major League Baseball to tap him as the game’s sixth commissioner later that year.

At Major League Baseball, Ueberroth again demonstrated firm leadership. He advanced the league’s efforts in racial equality by increasing minority hiring. He brought two of its most beloved legends Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays back into baseball’s good graces.  Additionally, he instilled a new level of marketing expertise to the sport and left the game in far stronger financial health, with overall revenues at record levels.