The nonprofit World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Fame, with offices on the Boise State University campus, will honor skiing legend Jimmie Heuga at the Morrison Center in Boise on Tuesday, June 24, at 7:30 p.m.
But his skiing isn't really what this award is about. Heuga is a humanitarian of the highest order, who took his own hardship and built something remarkable from it to help others.
The World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Fame recognizes individuals and organizations from the world of amateur and professional athletics for their humanitarian efforts. More than 35 sports-humanitarians have been enshrined in Boise, including tennis great Arthur Ashe, Major League Baseball pioneer Jackie Robinson, NFL coaching legend Tom Landry and soccer great Pelé.
Harmon Killibrew, born and raised in Payette, was the first Idaho native to be inducted into the Hall. Killibrew founded the Danny Thompson Memorial Golf Tournament in Sun Valley in 1977. The tournament has grossed more than $10 million for cancer and Leukemia research.
Americans Billy Kidd (who will attend the ceremony) and Huega stunned the ski world in 1964 by winning the silver and bronze in the slalom at the Innsbruck Olympics, behind Austrian Pepi Stiegler. They were the first American males to medal in alpine racing.
In 1970, when he was just 26 and at the height of his racing career, Heuga was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. At the time, people with MS were advised to avoid physical activity. This didn't sit well for the active athlete. Instead, Heuga began a program of exercise, nutrition and psychological motivation. His physical condition and his emotional outlook on life improved. His success revolutionized the management of MS.
"Jimmie changed the game single-handedly," longtime friend Dick Dorworth said.
In 1984, he founded the nonprofit Heuga Center for Multiple Sclerosis in Colorado to teach people with multiple sclerosis how to use exercise to help manage their lives. The center annually holds nearly 100 events in the U.S. and Canada and reaches some 6,700 people with MS and other diseases through programs and services.
Tickets are available at The Morrison Center for $10 for adults and $5 for students. For more information, visit sportshumanitarian.com.
