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ASHOF Announces 2025 Distinguished American Sportsman

The Board of Directors of the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame (ASHOF) announces that Jeff Underwood will be recognized as the 2025 Distinguished American Sportsman. Underwood was the first employee of Lakeshore Foundation and its first President and Chief Executive Officer. Under his visionary leadership, Lakeshore Foundation has become an internationally recognized leader in fitness, recreation, sport, research, and advocacy for people with physical disabilities and chronic health conditions.

During Underwood’s tenure, the Foundation grew from three to more than 160 staff members. In addition, the Foundation now offers 12 competitive sports, numerous local, national, and global advocacy initiatives, more than 20 research projects, and 92 aquatic, fitness, and recreation programs. In all, Underwood worked at Lakeshore Foundation for thirty years.

Through Underwood’s commitment to the Paralympic Movement, Lakeshore was named the first U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Training Site, training and supporting more than 52 Paralympic teams and athletes, coaches and staff who have captured more than 30 Paralympic medals.

Underwood is recognized for his leadership in the Paralympic Movement, serving as a member of the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee’s Paralympic Advisory Council and in 2008 as the Chef de Mission for the U.S. Paralympic Team for the Beijing Paralympic Games.

His strong commitment to injured military men and women led to the creation of the Lima Foxtrot program, which has served more than 2,800 injured service members and their families from 46 states.

Jeff Underwood | Photo courtesy Alabama Sports Hall of Fame

Underwood’s contributions to the local community and state are diverse and include serving as president of the Homewood City Council, a state senator, a member of the Homewood City School Board, a board member for Disable Sports USA, and the Bryant-Jordan Scholarship Program, a member of the Leadership Birmingham Class of 1998, and a member of the Leadership Alabama Class of 2011.

Underwood joins an impressive list of others who have been honored as Alabama Sports Hall of Fame Distinguished American Sportsmen. They are

Bob Hope (1988)

Hugh Culverhouse (1991)

Former President George H.W. Bush (1992)

Charles O. Finley (1993)

Larry D. Striplin, Jr. (1998)

Bill Ireland (2000)

Roy Kramer (2003)

Jim Wilson, Jr. (2005)

Michael E. Stephens (2006)

Joseph Gibbs (2008)

Nick Bollettieri (2009)

Rick Woodward (2010)

Don Logan (2011)

Ron Froehlich (2015)

Mike Slive (2015)

Edgar Welden (2016)

Pete Derzis (2017)

Jimmy Rane (2018)

Daniel Moore (2019)

Robbie Robertson (2020)

Angus R. Cooper II (2021)

John McMahon, Jr. (2021)

Gene Hallman (2022)

Bob Barrett (2023)

Mark Womack (2023)

The ASHOF’s 57th Annual Induction Banquet and Ceremony will be held in the Birmingham Ballroom, at the Sheraton Birmingham Hotel, on Saturday, May 3, 2025. For more information or to purchase tickets, please contact the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame Museum at (205) 323-6665. TG

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