Three-time Olympic Medalist for the US Olympic Team in Speed Skating. Not only is Joey a heavily decorated elite athlete, but he has long been a strong advocate for the power of sport as a tool for creating meaningful societal impact. I’m delighted to have seen Joey win his Olympic gold medal at the Torino 2006 Olympic Winter Games. More importantly, I joined millions around the world in amazement and praise of his immediate decision to take his “gold medal bonus” money from the US Olympic Committee and give it to Right to Play, an NGO that uses sport to positively change the lives of children in some of the world’s most impoverished areas. Further, his continuing efforts to fight for social change caused the Chinese Government to ban him from entering their country to attend the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games – which was certainly a “hot topic” in the Olympic world at the time, given the statement China made by barring such a decorated and lauded American Olympian from “the world’s largest peaceful gathering.” Joey has dedicated his time, money and reputation to many global initiatives that use sport to seek needed development in education, gender equity, health & wellness, job training, life skills, etc. Additionally, Joey has been a big catalyst for encouraging the corporate world to increase their engagement in the SFD space. Joey believes, as do we, that brands must play a crucial role in enabling sport to make positive impacts where it is most needed in communities across the globe.

Paul Teeple is the Director of Sport for Development at Partners of the Americas. Under his leadership, A Ganar has grown from a 3-country pilot in 2005 to an award-winning program that is now active in 15 countries throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. Described as “a youth workforce development program wrapped inside a soccer ball,” A Ganar uses lessons from the field of play to help at-risk youth learn marketable job skills. To date, over 10,500 youth have participated in A Ganar activities.

Paul has over 25 years of experience working in Latin America and the Caribbean focusing on youth, sport, leadership, small businesses, and agricultural development. He has also been a Peace Corps Volunteer in Guatemala, Program Director in Honduras and Deputy Director in Nicaragua. In the ‘90s, Paul worked on Peru Peace Scholarship Program and the Kellogg Fellows in Community Development program.