by Norma  Schwartzberg

SBJ GAME CHANGERS
   The SBJ (Sports Business Journal) had its award ceremony on September 25th at The Marriott Marquis in New York City to celebrate the most accomplished women in sports business across the country. The sports world has been dominated by men practically for centuries on this planet leaving women behind without having the recognition they deserve. About two decades ago slowly things started to change for the better for women. Little by little more and more females have been rewarded for their efforts and tireless work in the sports business encouraging young ladies to follow in their footsteps. The sports business is one of the hardest businesses for women to work in and get promoted. They have to prove themselves and deal with gender discrimination, however, the SBJ is now recognizing women's hard work and passion for what they do. On September 25th the celebration was All-about-the-girls! Happy to be alive and being awarded for their dedication was more than enough to celebrate with colleagues, friends, and family. From across the country, ladies from all backgrounds in the sports business gather at the SBJ gala to stand up for themselves and all women who are struggling to make it to male business domination. The amazing evening started with a lovely cocktail reception, the awardees had a special salon just for them to toast together. Followed by the program at the ballroom where the award ceremony took place. The ballroom was full with positive energy and good vibes. Honorees cheer up each other in a nice camaraderie gesture bringing hope for the future, and at the same time encourage other females to follow a career in the sports business without disappointment. The honorees are professional women who have passion for sports and work, doing the difficult task of combining work with family which is not an easy thing to do as you can guess. Many of them are daughters of immigrant couples, and some are from abroad who came to this country to follow the dream of making it in the USA. All of them are women who have a dream and aspirations as well as ambitions to fulfil. Some of the honorees came from traditional families who believed the right place for a woman is at home raising the family and others came from more modern families perhaps growing up with a working mother, nevertheless, all of them believed in themselves and believed women CAN DO IT!!!! This is the complete list of the accomplished winners: Hannah Basinger Atlanta Brave Andrea Brimmer Ally Financial
April Brown Major League Baseball
Kirta Carroll Legends
Latasha Causey NASCAR
Jessica Ciccone New York Jets
Becki Wronko Civello Next League
Kristi Coleman Carolina Panthers
Sarah Contardo Kentucky Derby & Churchill Downs
Erin Crowe Ottawa Senators
Nicole Deal US Olympic & Paralympic Committee
Patrice Distler National Hockey League
Michaela Durinova TelevisaUnivision
Jade-Li English KLUTCH Sports Group
Mali Friedman Washington Commanders
Rebecca Gitlitz DocCity Productions
Sara Grauf San Francisco Giants
Tammy Henault National Basketball Association
Nancy Henderson LPGA
Shannon Hooper 23XI Racing
Andrea Hopelain EA SPORTS
Patti Kleinman-Fallick United States Tennis Association
Jennifer Lastik Greater Orlando Sports Commission
Lisa Lazarus Horseracing Integrity & Safety Authority
Li Li Leung USA Gymnastics
Qiava Martinez Las Vegas Raiders
Jennifer Matthews FanDuel
Stephanie Mejia WME Sports
Belinda Oakley Sodexo Live!
Marla Ostroff Ticketmaster
Beth Penfield CAA ICON
Ingrid Petri National Football League
Susie Piotrkowski ESPN
Kelly Pracht nVenue
Emily Prazer Fórmula 1
Betsy Riley Prime Video
Amy Rouse Paragon Marketing Group
Amy Salmanson CBS Sports
Amy Scheer Professional Women’s Hockey League
Elizabeth Shakespeare Levy
Sana Shuaib Major League Soccer
Emily Spiegel MKTG Sports + Entertainment
Leela Srinivasan Parity
Katie Stocz Miller Orlando Magic
Kami Stoianov AEG
Kami Taylor Octagon
Carolyn Tisch Blodgett Next 3 Ventures
Amanda Weiner United States Golf Association
Fran Weld Canopy Team
Alicia Woznicki  Aramark Sports + Entertainment 

The evening did not stop there, there was an after-party to follow with a delicious dinner buffet, open bar, tasty desserts, and pleasant networking mingle with the rest of the attendees who were happy to be there and be part of this unique celebration. 

(see images below)

ABOUT SBJ
The SBJ Sports Business Journal (SBJ) Is the center of the sports industry. SBJ provides the news, the networking and the data to equip the most powerful executives in sports business to make more informed decisions, deals and partnerships. SBJ’s award-winning media content is delivered via multiple media platforms, unparalleled networking opportunities through its hallmark events and awards and market-leading data.
Sports Business Journal’s weekly and daily content provides original reporting and news aggregation, plus newsletters, podcasts and video. SBJ’s renowned events create opportunities for lead generation and partnerships as well as showcase the industry’s best talent in widely-viewed awards series.