First Ever Sportsmanship Exhibit Launches at The Sports Museum

BOSTON, Jan. 23, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The Sports Museum and HP Hood unveiled the first ever Sportsmanship Exhibit presented by Hood Milk during a morning ceremony today at TD Garden.  The exhibit highlights great sportsmanship moments in New England and beyond and features past winners of the Hood Sportsmanship Scholarship®.   Gord Kluzak, former Bruins Defenseman, representatives from The Sports Museum and HP Hood and past Hood Sportsmanship Scholarship winners and their families were in attendance.

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140123/NE50782)

The exhibit provides real-life examples of how professional athletes have been able to excel while still maintaining a high degree of sportsmanship.  The iconic moments include:

• Ted Williams and the Negro Leaguers: At his 1966 Hall of Fame induction speech Williams shocks the baseball world by urging the inclusion of Negro League players previously barred from the Hall.  As a result, several years later, the Hall of Fame inducts the first Negro Leaguers.
• The Stanley Cup Handshake: At the end of each Stanley Cup playoff series, the two teams (no matter how hard the battle) line up and shake each other's hands.  It is perhaps the best and most enduring example of sportsmanship in professional sports today.
• Jackie Robinson and Pee Wee Reese: In his 1947 rookie year, Jackie Robinson (the first African American to play major league baseball) receives a slew of racial slurs from a hostile Cincinnati crowd.  Dodger shortstop Pee Wee Reese silences the crowd by walking over to Robinson and placing his arm around his teammate, thus paving the way for widespread acceptance of the heroic Robinson.
• Jesse Owens and Luz Long: On the verge of being disqualified from the long jump competition at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Owens receives some unsolicited advice from Long, his chief rival, about how to shorten his approach.  Owens uses the advice to qualify and then goes on to edge Long for the gold medal.

"In sports, we are so used to celebrating the act of winning that we sometimes forget to celebrate the act of being a good sport," said Rusty Sullivan, Executive Director of The Sports Museum. "Putting together an exhibit solely focused on sportsmanship was a pleasure to curate and we are so grateful for HP Hood for making this possible and for their ongoing commitment to this cause with their Sportsmanship Scholarship."

The exhibit kicks off the fifth annual Hood Sportsmanship Scholarship program, which has become one of the largest scholarships in New England and has impacted 72 students and their families over the past four years. In 2014, Hood will award 18 $5,000 scholarships to high school seniors who demonstrate integrity and sportsmanship on and off the field.  More information can be found at hood.com/sportsmanship.

About Hood:
Founded in 1846, today Hood is one of the largest branded dairy operators in the United States. Hood is the number-one dairy brand in New England, and Hood's portfolio of national and super-regional brands and franchise products includes Hood, Crowley®,  Simply Smart® Milk, Heluva Good!®, LACTAID®, BAILEYS® Coffee Creamers, HERSHEY®'S Milk and Milkshakes and Blue Diamond Almond Breeze® Almondmilks. For more information about Hood, please visit Hood.com.

About The Sports Museum
The Sports Museum is a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational institution that has served Boston and New England for more than 30 years.  Located on Levels 5 and 6 of the TD Garden, The Sports Museum preserves and showcases the distinctly rich sports heritage of New England through an unparalleled collection of artifacts, multimedia, works of art, and interactive exhibits – and uses all of that to help build character and teach the values of leadership, respect, and cooperation to our youth.  For more on how The Sports Museum is making an impact in our community, please visit www.sportsmuseum.org

SOURCE HP Hood