Dick’s Sporting Goods and The Dick’s Sporting Goods Foundation on Thursday announced at its Sports Matter panel event a pledge to provide access to sports for one million youth athletes over the next five years.
As part of this effort, Dick’s also announced the company will match up to $1 million in donations made by customers to The Dick’s Foundation at Dick’s store checkouts or at SportsMatter.org from July 14 through September 13, 2019.
The foundation’s first Sports Matter advisory board features Oakland Raiders head coach Jon Gruden, skiing gold medalist Lindsey Vonn, Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, ESPN sports analyst Jalen Rose, beach volleyball gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings and more.
“Since 2014, Dick’s and The Dick’s Foundation have helped more than one million young athletes across the country play sports; however, new research we commissioned confirms there is still significant challenges impeding access to sports for many kids,” said Dick’s chairman and CEO, Ed Stack. “That is why we announced today our goal to provide access to sports for another one million young athletes over the next five years.”
Dick’s latest philanthropic commitment was informed by two studies recently commissioned by The Dick’s Foundation – one conducted by the RAND Institute and another by Women’s Sports Foundation.
The studies provided actionable insights regarding the barriers to youth sports participation, and the benefits for kids who play. Additionally, to expand on the data surrounding girls’ sports participation, Dick’s announced today it will continue to partner with the Women’s Sports Foundation (WSF) to conduct additional research on youth entry, participation and retention in sports.
Photo courtesy Dicks Sporting Goods
