WRAL Sports Fan

College Basketball

Krzyzewski, Suiter among those honored by Sports Council

Feb 20, 2009

Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski and longtime WRAL anchor Tom Suiter are among those being honored by the Greater Raleigh Sports Council at its sixth annual Evening of Champions Awards Celebration March 5.

The dinner honors local athletes, coaches, teams, and community members for their excellence in sports and their positive impact on the community. Tickets are still available to the public.

Krzyzewski will be awarded the Capitol Broadcasting Company Sports Person of the Year Award. The longtime Blue Devils coach led the U.S. Olympic team to the gold medal last summer.

Suiter will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award. Suiter retired from his anchor role in December 2008 after 37 years as a sports anchor for WRAL.

The N.C. State athletics department will be honored with the Pharmaceutical Strategic Initiative Community Spirit Award for its work in building and maintaining a thriving sports community.

Clay Council, a local volunteer baseball coach, will receive the John Freehafer Sports Volunteer of the Year Award. Council was selected by Raleigh native and current Texas Ranger Josh Hamilton to be his pitcher for the 2008 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby. Council, 71 years old, has been throwing batting practice to local kids for almost 40 years.

Elexis Gillette, U.S. Paralympian, will take home the Durham Bulls Baseball Club Courage and Character Award. Gillette, who has been visually impaired since the second grade, set two new American records and won a silver medal during his competitions in the 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing, China.

N.C. State quarterback Russell Wilson will accept the Amateur Athletics Award. Wilson became the first freshman quarterback ever named to the All-ACC first team and was the ACC Rookie of the Year.

Landon Talley of Knightdale High School and Julie Ross of Green Hope High School will be awarded the CARQUEST Auto Parts High School Scholar Athletes of the Year Awards. Both Talley and Ross are active in many different school and community organizations and carry a GPA above 4.0.

The 2009 Evening of Champions will be held March 5 at the Embassy Suites Raleigh-Durham/Research Triangle from 5 to 9 p.m. East Carolina football coach Skip Holtz will be the keynote speaker. More than 400 people are expected to attend this event chaired by retired Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Glen Wesley. The event will also include a silent auction benefiting the Greater Raleigh Sports Council.

Tickets may be purchased for $75 per Greater Raleigh Sports Council member and $125 per non-Greater Raleigh Sports Council member online at www.thesportscouncil.org.