As president and CEO of a national business consulting firm, Randall Blum specializes incorporate efficiency and productivity. Apart from his professional endeavors, Randall Blum supports a variety of nonprofit organizations, including the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU).
The AAU was established in 1888 as a vehicle for the promotion and development of physical fitness and amateur sports programs in the US. It now has almost 700,000 members and 150,000 volunteers participating in more than 40 athletic programs. The nonprofit has honored the top amateur athlete in the country with the James E. Sullivan Award every year since 1930 and, in 2017, launched the Gussie Crawford Lifetime Achievement Award to recognize those who have made significant contributions to amateur sports.
The first-ever Gussie Crawford Lifetime Achievement Award was awarded to track and field legend Jesse Owens. His granddaughter, Gina Hemphill-Strachan, accepted the award on behalf of Owens' family. Owens, who died in 1980, was a four-time Olympic gold medal winner and former world record holder in the long jump event. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1976. Jim Thorpe and Mildred Ella "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias were the award recipients in 2018 and 2019, respectively.
