On Thursday, August 27 from 6 – 7:30 pm, the nonprofit Positive Coaching Alliance/New England (PCA), will stream a workout led by TB12 as part of an inspiring program to raise awareness and to support its work helping do sports right so young athletes build the character, leadership, grit, resilience, compassion and so much more they need to thrive.

This is the fourth year PCA has offered this event, the Harvard Stadium Stampede. For 2020, the event is going virtual. With an impressive roster of college, Olympic, and professional athletes, coaches, and sports executives sharing how sports has shaped who they are, this will be a workout to remember. Hosting the event for PCA, and keeping the evening moving will be David Wade, WBZ-TV/ CBS Boston news anchor and a two-time veteran of the Harvard Stadium Stampede.

“We absolutely could not cancel this event, this year. The stadium event is one of my favorite events of the year because we don’t just talk about sports, we do sports—we sweat together and we celebrate sports done right, and that is more important now than ever,” said PCA’s Regional Director for New England, Beth O’Neill Maloney. “This event is one way young athletes, and all of us, can overcome the challenge of the pandemic. With a bit of creativity, we have made it virtual. We will stream the event to give everyone the chance to be active, to compete, and to be part of something bigger than all of us. The funds we raised from this event will help PCA support young athletes and help them emerge from the pandemic ready to play the sports they love."

How did this unique event come about? In 2017, PCA’s Associate Board leaders were searching for ideas for an active event to support PCA. Alyssa Nugent, Senior Account Manager at Riddle and Bloom, was inspired by the steady stream of people working out at all hours of the day in Harvard Stadium (since the pandemic the stadium is closed). Knowing that Harvard Athletics had long supported PCA, Alyssa suggested the Stadium Stampede, in Harvard’s iconic Stadium. “Essentially, I thought it would be like a road race but better. We would all be in a single, amazing space where people can actually interact—and cheer each other on. What could be better? We added huge character banners, featuring words to describe the character you build through sports done right, CHARACTER, GRIT, RESILIENCE, and finally JOY, and hung them around the top of the stadium so people could focus on those words as they worked their way up the stadium.” The event grew from 100 people the first year to about 300 in 2019. “We hope to beat that number this year,” Nugent said.

“It has been a challenge to pivot to virtual, but I think we’ve done it,” said Associate Board leader Corbin Stall, Capital Markets Associate at JLL and a former Dartmouth College football player. “The banners went digital, and we brought them to life by asking some of New England’s favorite college, Olympic, and professional athletes, coaches, and sports executives to share video messages about how sports has shaped who they are,” said Stall. The list is impressive, and includes the Bruins’ Zdeno Chara, the Pride’s Jillian Dempsey, Olympian Gevvie Stone, Tom Brady, the Red Sox’ Sam Kennedy and the Revs’ Brian Bilello, Boston Cannons Coach Sean Quirk, BC Hockey Coach Jerry York, Harvard Hockey Coach Katey Stone, Harvard Basketball Coach Kathy Delaney Smith, Yale Basketball Coach James Jones, and more.

The third leader of PCA’s Associate Board, Kyle Bramble, Product and Corporate Strategy Analyst at Putnam Investments, who also played football at Dartmouth, has remained involved in this event, from London. Why? “I chose to join this workout and I donate to PCA from London because of my past experiences with the Stampede and the organization. Sports have always been a major part of my life, and anything I can do to help PCA promote the positive culture and community of the sports world... SIGN ME UP!"

For those who love to compete, PCA will award prizes for Grit, Team Spirit, Generosity, Creativity, and the Largest Team. Participants can upload photos or videos before, during, and up to 24 hours after the workout showing their grit, spirit and more to burst.com/stadium2020 and on social media with #Stadium2020. To win the prizes for Largest Team and for Generosity, participants will have to recruit, donate, or fundraise with enthusiasm to benefit PCA and sports done right.

PCA will stream the event, and participants can join from anywhere their homes, backyards, in the world. To register, the fee is $20/25 per person. Anyone under 25 pays just $20, 25 and older pay $25. The first 300 people to register will receive a New Balance event t-shirt, RXBAR and 4-pack of TRU energy shots. Everyone who registers will receive coupons from event sponsors New Balance, TB12, and Marathon Sports.

More details and a link to register on PCA’s website here: https://positivecoach.org/events/2020-harvard-stadium-stampede/. 

As part of this special evening, PCA will offer an online auction featuring a variety of items ranging from the “Sam Adams Party Package” to “Lunch with Olympian and MD Gevvie Stone.”

Proceeds from this event will support PCA in New England.