31st Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner
Benefiting The Buoniconti Fund To Cure Paralysis
The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis honored an unparalleled group of Hall of Famers, Gold Medalists, World Champions and philanthropists in front of more than 1,300 supporters at the Waldorf Astoria in New York, raising millions for spinal cord injury research during the 31st Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner.
The benefit, hosted by NFL Hall of Famer Nick Buoniconti and his son Marc, was emceed by NBC’s Nightly News anchor Lester Holt in front of a sold-out crowd. The Buoniconti Fund honored New York Yankees great and World Series Champion Mariano Rivera, seven-time tennis Major winner and fashion designer Venus Williams, NFL Hall of Fame running back from the New York Jets Curtis Martin, New York Knicks legend and NBA Hall of Famer Willis Reed, four-time IndyCar Series Champion Dario Franchitti, Olympic Gold Medalist Tara Lipinski, WNBA, NBA, and FIBA Hall of Fame basketball great Cheryl Miller, and record-setting long-distance swimmer Diana Nyad.
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The evening featured the presentation of The Buoniconti Fund Award to Golden Globe Winner Christian Slater, The Humanitarian Award to Mr. Las Vegas Wayne Newton, The Buoniconti Fund’s Outstanding Philanthropist Award, presented by Grammy Award winners Gloria and Emilio Estefan, to James L. Nederlander, President of The Nederlander Organization, The Great American Icon Award to legendary astronaut Buzz Aldrin, and The Christine E. Lynn Champion for a Cure Award to Sports Legend Event Chairman Mark Dalton. The Sports Legends Dinner also paid special tribute to Sports Legend Dinner past honoree Muhammed Ali and celebrated the 50th birthday of Marc Buoniconti.
The cast of the smash hit, Broadway musical, “On Your Feet! – The Story of Gloria and Emilio Estefan,” dazzled the guests who sang and danced along to the Estefan hits.
The Great Sports Legends Dinner has honored more than 300 sports legends and honorees and has raised millions for The Miami Project’s spinal cord injury research programs. The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, a center of excellence at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, is committed to finding a cure for paralysis resulting from spinal cord injury and to seeing millions worldwide walk again.
For more information about The Buoniconti Fund, please visit: www.thebuonicontifund.com Follow us at facebook.com/cureparalysis and on twitter and Instagram @BuonicontiFund and use the hashtags #BuonicontiFund and #GSLD31.
