Kerri Walsh Jennings
Kerri Walsh Jennings is a 5 time Olympian, 3 time Olympic gold medalist, 1 time bronze medalist in beach volleyball. She was a 4 time 1st Team All-American at Stanford University where her teams won 2 National Championships (‘96, ‘97) and finished runner-up in ‘99. Kerri transitioned to beach volleyball after the 2000 Olympic Games where her indoor USA Volleyball team finished 4th. Jennings partnered up with Misty May-Treanor in 2001 and started the greatest run of excellence for any beach volleyball duo in history. Together, Jennings and May-Treanor won 3 consecutive World Championships and 3 Olympic Gold medals over an 11 year period. They accrued a truly incredible 112 match win streak which broke their own record of an 89 match win streak. They were excellent at raising the bar and embodied sustained excellence at the highest level. They transformed the game here in America and globally. Kerri is a very proud mother of 3 beautiful babies and proud wife of Casey Jennings. Together, Kerri and Casey co-founded Platform 1440 & p1440 Foundation, which is dedicated to inspiring, empowering and supporting our nations youth through the transformational power of sport – specifically volleyball. Kerri is part of the ownership group of the Pro Volleyball Federation team in San Diego (San Diego Mojo) and is constantly working toward bettering the opportunities within and around her sport for all stakeholders. Kerri Walsh Jennings officially retired from the Olympic pursuit in 2023 and looks forward to creating and living a beautiful life with her family and to creating a new and golden trajectory for herself, her global community, and for her sport as a whole.
Matt Higgins
Matt Higgins is one of the preeminent investors in the consumer, sports, and entertainment space. Created alongside Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, RSE Ventures has built an expansive multi-billion-dollar investment portfolio of over 100 leading brands and unicorns across sports and entertainment, media and marketing, consumer and technology industries – including several of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies. Higgins became one of the first employees – and ultimately Chief Operating Officer – of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, the federally funded government agency created to plan the rebuilding of the World Trade Center site. Mr. Higgins helped organize the largest international design competition in history culminating in Reflecting Absence, the September 11th National Memorial, and the development of the 1,776-feet-tall One World Trade Center, the tallest building in the Northern Hemisphere. Making his mark on two NFL franchises, Mr. Higgins spent 15 years in senior leadership positions with National Football League teams, overseeing the revenue functions of the New York Jets as Executive Vice President of Business Operations, and then serving as Vice Chairman of the Miami Dolphins from 2012–2021. Higgins serves as an Executive Fellow at the Harvard Business School, co-teaching the course “Moving Beyond Direct-to-Consumer”, the leading course on direct-to-consumer brands in the United States. Making a splash on ABC’s Shark Tank, Matt joined the likes of Chris Sacca and Sara Blakely, as a Guest Shark on the Emmy award-winning TV show during seasons 10-11. In 2023, his debut book, Burn the Boats, landed on the Wall Street Journal bestseller list. Pushing the boundaries of the consumer experience, Higgins expanded RSE’s focus to scale some of New York City’s most iconic brands, from Magnolia Bakery, David Chang’s Momofuku and Milk Bar to &pizza and Bluestone Lane. Higgins has overseen the expansion of these concepts into grocery stores, with the launch of CPG products all across America. From Magnolia Bakery’s soft baked cookies in concession stands at the U.S. Open, Milk Bar’s famed ice cream hitting the freezer aisle, and Momofuku’s Chili Crunch Oil becoming a household pantry staple, Higgins has taken these quintessential brands global. With investments in Magic Spoon, Gorgie, Outstanding Foods, and Banza, Higgins has become a proven backer of the next generation of new wave brands disrupting the CPG space. Additional highlights of RSE’s portfolio include Resy, an Open Table competitor acquired by American Express in 2019; MSCHF, the art collective of the zeitgeist; Beta Technologies, building a next generation electric vertical take-off and landing (evTOL) aircraft; and Relevent Sports, a media rights agency, with a joint venture with global soccer leagues Premier League and LaLiga, organizing matches around the world attended by over 365,000 fans in US and Mexico. Higgins is also co-owner of VaynerMedia, the largest social-media-first agency in the world founded by Gary Vaynerchuk. In 2019, he received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, joining the ranks of seven former U.S. presidents, Nobel Prize winners and other leaders for work to improve society. He is also a longstanding board member of Autism Speaks.
Jesse Itzler
A successful serial entrepreneur, Jesse’s mission is to continually raise the bar and build his LIFE RESUME. And with a passion for endurance challenges, he completed Ultraman in 2022 at the age of 53, which entails a 6.2 mile open water swim, 261.4 mile bike, and 52.4 mile run, the same year he sold his endurance hiking company, 29029 Everesting, to iFit. These things are not uncommon for Jesse, who also completed a 100 mile running race, sold Marquis Jet to Warren Buffett in 2010, and partnered with Zico Coconut Water which sold to Coca-Cola in 2013. Jesse’s career is unlike anyone else. He started as a rapper on MTV in 1991, became the Manager of the greatest hip hop band ever, Run-DMC, and wrote the anthem for the NY Knicks. He always says, “you don’t have to be the smartest in the room, but you have to be the most passionate.” He teaches his principles and best practices through his online course and coaching program—where thousands of people have learned from his lifestyle approach and applied it to their own. When he’s not training with Navy Seals (check out his book, Living with A Seal) or learning from monks (check out his other book, Living with Monks), you can find him plunging in cold water and sweating in hot saunas as part of his latest venture, All Day Running Co., a brand built on the foundation of combining race-like challenges (half-marathons, marathons, etc.) with retreat-like experiences (cold and heat exposure). At the end of the day, his proudest accomplishment is his family—with 3 sons and a daughter, he and his wife, Sara Blakely (founder of SPANX), definitely have their hands full!
Dominique Dawes
Owner of the Dominique Dawes Gymnastics & Ninja Academies, Dominique opened the gyms to continue her commitment to developing a healthy and compassionate culture in the sport of gymnastics. Her first academy opened in the midst of a global pandemic, in July 2020, her second location opened in 2023, and she will be opening her third Academy in 2024 located in Columbia, MD. Dawes holds minority ownership of the Washington Spirit of the National Women’s Soccer League, and she also became part of the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons ownership group as a Limited Partner in 2024. Dominique served as the co-chair of the President’s Council for Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition under the Obama administration alongside Drew Brees. Alongside LeBron James and Maverick Carter, she served as Executive Producer of the Peacock docu-series “Golden”, the journey of USA’s elite gymnasts on the road to the Tokyo Olympics, which was nominated for a Sports Emmy. Dawes holds her degree from the University of Maryland and was inducted into UMD’s prestigious Hall of Fame in 2022. In 2024, her hometown of Montgomery County, Maryland honored her career and legacy with a life-size statue to continue inspiring the next generation to follow in her footsteps. As a wife, mother of four, Olympian, and business owner, Dominique Dawes has transcended the world of sports, politics, entertainment and culture.