VESTAL, NY – The Binghamton Bearcats Athletic Association (BBAA) will host its 17^th Annual Celebrating Women's Athletics Luncheon presented by M&T Bank on Monday, February 21. The event begins at 11:30 a.m. at the Events Center.

Nancy Hogshead-Makar, J.D., OLY, three-time Olympic gold medal winner and civil rights lawyer will be the featured speaker. Hogshead-Makar is the founder and CEO of Champion Women, a non-profit providing legal advocacy for girls and women in sports.

Sports Illustrated listed her as one of the most influential people in the history of Title IX, and on their list of "the most powerful, most influential and most outstanding women in sports right now – the game-changers who are speaking out, setting the bar and making a difference."

Hogshead-Makar has received significant awards recognizing her commitment to girls and women in athletics, from the International Olympic Committee, the National Organization for Women, the Drake Group, Women Leaders in College Sports, WeCOACH, and SHAPE America. She has received the Play the Game Award, the Babe Didrikson Zaharias Award and the Kate Stoneman Award for her service to women in the legal profession. She has been inducted into the Academic All-America Hall of Fame, the International Scholar-Athlete, the National Consortium for Academics and Sports, and the National Association for Sports and Physical Education Halls of Fame, and she has received an honorary doctorate from Springfield College.

Hogshead-Makar capped eight years as a world class swimmer at the 1984 Olympics, where she won three gold medals and one silver medal. She was undefeated through high school and college dual meets. Major awards include the Nathan Mallison Award, given to Florida's outstanding athlete, and the prestigious Kiphuth Award, given to America's best all-around swimmer nationally. Sports Illustrated ranked her as Florida's 13th greatest athlete of the 20th Century and the state's third-greatest female athlete.

Hogshead-Makar has been inducted into eleven sports halls of fame, including the International Swimming Hall of Fame and the International Women's Sports Hall of Fame.

The Celebrating Women's Athletics Luncheon event has raised more than $500,000 to support the BBAA Women's Scholarship Fund. In 2021, 10 BBAA Women's Scholarships were awarded to female student-athletes. This event began in 2006, with just 75 attendees, and today is one of the athletics department's primary fundraisers. In 2020 for the last in-person CWAL, the event drew a record 810 guests. 

"Nancy Hogshead-Makar has made an enormous impact as an athlete, lawyer and advocate, and our team at M&T Bank is grateful to have the opportunity to support her visit to Binghamton," said M&T Bank Regional President Peter Newman. "As this event has expanded over the years, it has been such an honor to play a role in growing the BBAA Women's Scholarship Fund. Beyond the financial support the fund provides to female student-athletes, it also inspires young women at high schools throughout the Southern Tier to pursue their athletic and academic dreams. We're determined to help grow its impact and support access to education."

Individual tickets are $60/person, and a table sponsorship is $600 which accommodates up to 10 guests and includes program recognition. New this year are team-specific table sponsorships, featuring the opportunity for 10 female student-athletes from that specific program to attend. Table sponsorships are $1,000/each, and include table signage, program and video board recognition for the purchaser.

Individual tickets, table sponsors and team sponsorships are available for purchase at: www.bubearcats.com/cwal