Jerry's Story
This is the story of a man who has left a legacy of success in various professional sport and business ventures.
Jerry Colangelo embodies the quintessential story of a “hometown boy made good”. He grew up in a house that his grandfather constructed with wood from railroad cars. Once a gangly kid from the working-class Hungry Hills neighborhood in Chicago Heights, he often left home with a salt shaker in his pocket. When his stomach growled, he would swipe a tomato from a neighborhood garden and fix himself lunch.
Colangelo states that, because of his strong Italian roots, he has been able to overcome many obsticles. . . . “I got my foundation about hard work, commitment, family, passion and faith from these roots. It's not if you have adversity, it's how you deal with it when it comes.”
Among many other accomplishments, Jerry Colangelo owned the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, built two state-of-the-art sports facilities and brought Major League Baseball to Phoenix with the Arizona Diamondbacks expansion team. Additionally, he won a world championship with the Diamondbacks and returned the once-tarnished U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team to glory. Recently, Colangelo restored America's tarnished image by creating a team that won the 2010 FIBA World Championship.
Jerry Colangelo embodies the quintessential story of a “hometown boy made good”. He grew up in a house that his grandfather constructed with wood from railroad cars. Once a gangly kid from the working-class Hungry Hills neighborhood in Chicago Heights, he often left home with a salt shaker in his pocket. When his stomach growled, he would swipe a tomato from a neighborhood garden and fix himself lunch.
Colangelo states that, because of his strong Italian roots, he has been able to overcome many obsticles. . . . “I got my foundation about hard work, commitment, family, passion and faith from these roots. It's not if you have adversity, it's how you deal with it when it comes.”
Among many other accomplishments, Jerry Colangelo owned the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, built two state-of-the-art sports facilities and brought Major League Baseball to Phoenix with the Arizona Diamondbacks expansion team. Additionally, he won a world championship with the Diamondbacks and returned the once-tarnished U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team to glory. Recently, Colangelo restored America's tarnished image by creating a team that won the 2010 FIBA World Championship.
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The Gold Medal
As Chairman and Managing Director of the USA Men’s Basketball, Colangelo won the Gold Medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. He is now focused on additional Gold Medals at the 2010 World Championships and 2012 Olympic Games in London.