Week-Long Initiative Showcases Fundraising Effort with Special Content across Multiple ESPN Platforms

The fifth annual Jimmy V Week for Cancer Research – a week-long initiative featuring special content across ESPN platforms and programs to drive awareness of and donations to The V Foundation for Cancer Research – will begin Wednesday, Nov. 30 and conclude Tuesday, Dec. 6. Last year, the Jimmy V Week initiative raised a record $1,238,799 in net proceeds for cancer research, nearing a total of $4 million ($3,868,799) in the first four years. The V Foundation awards 100% of donations directly to cancer research.

Throughout the week, ESPN will showcase special content and specific messages across ESPN U.S. platforms to raise awareness of the need to fund cancer research and to spotlight research successes.

Jimmy V Week will launch Wednesday, Nov. 30, at 7 p.m. ET with a simulcast of Jim Valvano’s 1993 ESPYs speech across ESPN media. The week will conclude with the Jimmy V Men’s and Women’s Basketball Classics on Tuesday, Dec. 6. The 17th annual men’s doubleheader at Madison Square Garden will match No. 25 Missouri vs. Villanova at 7 p.m. and Washington vs. No. 19 Marquette at 9 p.m., both on ESPN. The 10th annual women’s showdown will feature NCAA National Champion No. 6 Texas A&M at defending BIG EAST champion No. 4 Connecticut at 7 p.m. from the XL Center in Hartford.

As part of a Team ESPN initiative, employees companywide have volunteered for several months to develop content and new applications.

“The passion and generosity of sports fans and our employees to fight this disease is inspiring,” said George Bodenheimer, President, ESPN, Inc. and ABC Sports. “We’re one big sports family making a difference.”

Jimmy V Week content will be incorporated into studio programs and event telecasts across ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN.com, ESPN3, ESPNEWS, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Classic and ESPN Mobile. Highlights:

Content:

• A special launch of the week on November 30 at 7 p.m. featuring Valvano’s 1993 ESPYs speech aired simultaneously across multiple entities;
• Special elements – including features, vignettes and public service announcements – during game and studio programming across numerous ESPN platforms;
• Special content and multiple chat sessions on ESPN.com;
• Special content on Jorge Ramos talk show on ESPN Deportes Radio and ESPN Deportes;
• Updates and user comments on various ESPN and V Foundation Facebook and Twitter pages;
• A Never Give Up marathon on ESPN Classic;
• Special graphics, including a Jimmy V Week logo and on-screen watermark.

Further Details:
Simultaneous Launch Across Multiple Entities
Jimmy V Week will open with a complete presentation of Jim Valvano’s speech from the 1993 ESPYs aired across numerous ESPN platforms as well as the ABC SuperSign in Times Square. The simultaneous launch on Wednesday, No. 30, at 7 p.m. includes a special introduction by cancer survivors Stuart Scott, an anchor for ESPN, and New York Giants linebacker Mark Herzlich. The approximate 13-minute long open will be seen simultaneously on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNEWS, ESPN Classic, ESPN3, ESPN Deportes and the Longhorn Network.

The speech will be available for the entire week on ESPN.com, ESPN3 and jimmyv.org.

Event and Studio Programming to Showcase Jimmy V Week Elements
Jimmy V Week segments on how cancer has touched the sports world will appear during studio and event programming all week, including guest interviews, features, testimonials and vignettes. The live event schedule features college basketball, football and soccer games; Monday Night Football, English Premier League soccer and more.

In addition, Jimmy V Week elements, guests and features will be aired on SportsCenter, First Take, PTI and Outside the Lines, as well as ESPN Radio’s national programs. Guests are to be determined.

Special ESPN.com Content, Highlighted by Multiple Chats
ESPN.com will have special Jimmy V Week content available on a dedicated page, highlighted by multiple chat sessions with sports celebrities and ESPN personalities throughout the week. Scheduled guests include ESPN’s Dick Vitale (Dec. 1 at 11 a.m.); Jimmy V 2011 ESPYs Award Winner, Anthony Robles, a NCAA National Champion wrestler with Arizona State (Dec. 2 at 3 p.m.); and Concordia University men’s basketball coach Tyler Jones, who was diagnosed with prostate cancer in May (Dec. 6 at noon).

Additional content includes stories on athletes who have been touched by cancer, including San Diego Padres bullpen coach Darrel Akerfeld who spent this past season with the team while battling pancreatic cancer (reported by Tom Friend); and links to a calendar of events and to www.jimmyv.org for more information on The V Foundation and how to donate.

ESPN Deportes
ESPN Deportes will have special Jimmy V Week content throughout the week, including on Jorge Ramos y Su Banda, ESPN Deportes Radio’s (simulcast on ESPN Deportes TV) afternoon drive soccer talk show co-hosted by soccer personalities Jorge Ramos and Hernán Pereyra. Ramos, who will continue to serve as ESPN’s Spanish-language spokesperson for The V Foundation during the week, will raise awareness of Jim and the Foundation’s efforts through special daily segments on the show.

espnW
espnW will have an essay by analyst Rebecca Lobo about her mother, who succumbed to breast cancer this summer.

ESPN High School
ESPN High School will provide features on cancer survivors throughout the week, including:

• Dani Urman: Sixteen-year-old Dani Urman of Denver lost her left knee and femur to a cancer that commonly affects teens – but not her resolve to return to the golf course.
• Josh Dickerson: Cancer of the jaw knocked Washington baseball star Josh Dickerson down, but it didn’t take long for him to brush himself off and get back in the batter’s box.

ESPN Classic Never Give Up Marathon
ESPN Classic will offer a Never Give Up marathon to launch Jimmy V Week Wednesday, Nov. 30 from 10:30 a.m. to 7:45 p.m.

The V Foundation on Facebook and Twitter
Jimmy V Week updates and user comments will be available through The V Foundation Facebook and Twitter pages as well as the ESPN You Tube channel.

Jimmy V Week for Cancer Research Message on BottomLine
The following Jimmy V Week messages will be included across each of the ESPN networks’ BottomLines for live event programming: “Jimmy V Week for Cancer Research – Join ESPN and The V Foundation in the fight against cancer. Call (800) 4-JIMMY-V or visit jimmyv.org” and “To donate $10, text jimmyv to 85944. Message and data rates may apply.” The message will appear in Spanish on ESPN Deportes’ BottomLine.

Public Service Announcements
Public service announcements regarding the need for cancer research will air across multiple ESPN networks.

Watermark Logo
In an effort to remind viewers of the special week-long initiative, a Jimmy V Week watermark logo will appear in the upper right corner of the screen during live event programming across ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN Classic and ESPN3.

The V Foundation
The V Foundation for Cancer Research was founded in 1993 by ESPN and the late Jim Valvano, legendary North Carolina State basketball coach and ESPN commentator. Since 1993, The Foundation has raised more than $100 million to fund cancer research grants nationwide. It awards 100 percent of all direct cash donations and net proceeds of events directly to cancer research and related programs. Administrative and fundraising expenses are paid by the Foundation’s endowment. The Foundation awards grants through a competitive awards process strictly supervised by a Scientific Advisory Board. For more information on The V Foundation or to make a donation, please visit www.jimmyv.org.

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