First Casey Martin Award presented

Nov. 14, 2001: Pro golfer Casey Martin, Senator Bob Dole and Nike CEO Phil Knight awarded the first Casey Martin Award during a ceremony at the Tiger Woods Center on the Nike campus.

Paralympic Soccer Team member Eli Wolff, received the award for his advocacy and courage to help people with disabilities pursue sports despite physical, societal or cultural barriers. Wolff was selected to receive the award based on his academic contributions to research of people with disabilities; his advocacy and development of innovative new programming for inclusion of disabled athletes in competition; his participation as an athlete in the Paralympics; and he is the new spokesperson for the National Stroke Association.

Senator Dole, on hand to show his support of Casey Martin and Eli Wolff, and to share his personal experiences as an individual with a disability, commended Nike and Martin for creating this award.

"Casey is certainly not the first athlete to compete with a disability and will not be the last," said Senator Dole. "Yet, rarely do disabled athletes change the face of sport as Casey has done, so it makes perfect sense that the Nike award bears his name."

Phil Knight said during his welcoming remarks, "One critical piece of diversity is ensuring that we have people of all abilities in our work place and on our playing field. Nike is proud to announce the Casey Martin Award to honor people with disabilities who have made a difference in sports. Eli is the obvious choice to receive this award. His dedication and determination inspires those around him."

Wolff is the Coordinator of the Disability Sports Research Initiative within Northeastern University's Center for the Study of Sport in Society. A recent Brown University graduate, Wolff was awarded a Brown University Royce Fellowship to examine the efforts of the seven disabled sports organizations recognized by the United States Olympic Committee.

Wolff is a founding member of the Disability Soccer Committee of the United States Soccer Federation, as well as an organizer of the Disabled Women in Sport Committee of the Women's Sports Foundation. The Casey Martin Award will be given annually by Nike to an individual of any age with a current disability as defined by the Department of Justice; someone who has pursued their sport of choice to a level of success despite challenges; or someone who has taken a personal or public stand to support athletes with disabilities to participate in sports.

"Nike's commitment to diversity is impressive and I am proud to be a part of that commitment � I applaud Nike's support of the advancement of athletes with disabilities," Martin said as he presented the award. "I am honored to be a part of Nike's new award program that recognizes individuals and organizations that respect diversity and are striving to make a difference."

About the award:

The award is named in honor of Casey Martin, who has Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber syndrome, a rare, incurable and degenerative condition that causes chronic leg pain and makes it physically impossible for him to walk during tournaments. He sued the PGA Tour on Feb. 2, 1998, claiming that the Tour's denial of his request to ride a cart during PGA Tour events violated his civil liberties under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals later upheld Martin's victory in that trial. The PGA Tour appealed the decision to the United States Supreme Court, which ruled in favor of Martin in May 2001.