Colin Kaepernick honored as Humanitarian of the Year at 2026 Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Awards
The Muhammad Ali Center celebrates the 13th annual event honoring global changemakers, showcasing vision for the
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LOUISVILLE, Ky., Nov. 08, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Muhammad Ali Center hosted its 13th annual Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Awards on Saturday, November 7 at the Ali Center in Louisville, Kentucky. The Center’s largest annual fundraising event celebrated 10 esteemed humanitarians from across the globe and highlighted a new vision for the Ali Center’s future.
Colin Kaepernick, legendary NFL quarterback, civil rights activist and entrepreneur, received this year’s ‘Humanitarian of the Year’ award, joining a distinguished class of seasoned humanitarians over the history of the program, including Shaquille O’Neal, President Jimmy Carter, Michael J. Fox, Common, Patricia Arquette, Geena Davis, and more.
“As we’re out pursuing our dreams, and chasing our passions, and chasing our greatness, think about how many people you can bring along with you,” Kaepernick said. “Our goal should not just be to reach the highest heights individually, it should be ‘what are we willing to sacrifice to make sure we are bringing the most people with us on that journey.’”
A leader on and off the field, Kaepernick is a prolific entrepreneur and education champion. Kaepernick founded Lumi, an AI-driven platform which utilizes storytelling as a pathway to literacy. Lumi’s mission is to advance human knowledge and literacy by empowering student expression in every classroom, district, and community. Kaepernick is committed to creativity, equity, and learning that sparks real engagement.
In 2015, he founded Know Your Rights Camp, empowering Black and Brown youth through education, systems change and elevating the next generation of changemakers. He is also the founder of Kaepernick Publishing and is a #1 NY Times Bestselling Author for his book The Perilous Fight. He has also written several children’s books, including his most recent release with Scholastic, “We Are Free, You & Me,” and New York Times bestseller “I Color Myself Different.” He has won an Emmy as part of Nike’s “Dream Crazy” campaign, and his self-produced Netflix documentary series “Colin in Black & White” has won two NAACP Image Awards.
As a quarterback, Kaepernick spent six seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, setting the all-time NFL record for most rushing yards (181) in a game by a quarterback. He also led the team to an appearance in Super Bowl XLVII (47) – their first Super Bowl appearance in over a decade as well as consecutive NFC Championship games.
Ten years ago in August 2016, Kaepernick sparked a national movement by kneeling during the national anthem before an NFL preseason game to protest racial injustice and police brutality.
Louisville philanthropists Steve and Amy Trager received the ‘Kentucky Humanitarian Award’ for their longtime dedication to building up the Louisville community.
“We’ve been fortunate to work alongside extraordinary people throughout Louisville’s civic, charitable and business communities. No meaningful accomplishment is ever achieved alone,” said Amy Trager.
Steve is a Louisville native and graduate of Atherton High School. He attended The University of Texas at Austin, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Finance and met his beautiful wife, Amy. Following their graduation and engagement, the couple returned to Louisville, where Steve earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Louisville School of Law.
Amy began her professional career with Louisville’s Summer Youth Employment Program before joining the City of Louisville’s Employee Relations Training Division, where she worked from 1983 to 1988. She later participated in the Management Training Program at Byck’s in St. Matthews.
Throughout their careers, both Amy and Steve have dedicated themselves to serving the Louisville community. Steve has served as chairman of the Kentucky Bankers Association, Leadership Kentucky, the University of Louisville Board of Overseers, and the 2016 Fund for the Arts Campaign. Amy volunteered with Home of the Innocents from 1990 to 2006, serving on its Board of Directors, and later advocated for vulnerable children as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteer.
Longtime Muhammad Ali Center board member and friend of Muhammad and Lonnie Ali’s, John Ramsey, was surprised with the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ for his continued dedication to the Ali Center, his many lifelong philanthropic activations throughout the city and inspiring greatness through his many connections as the Director of City Partnerships for the Louisville Metro. Ramsey embodies Muhammad’s quote, “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.”
“After getting to know (Muhammad), it became so much less about the athlete, and so much more about heart,” Ramsey said. “He was authentic, he was someone who was genuine. We can recognize that… we can be as kind as Muhammad. We can do that.”
Six young adults aged 30 years or younger were also recognized as Core Principle Awardees for creating positive change in their communities and beyond.
Mateo Salvatto (27), an entrepreneur from Argentina, is a best-selling author and keynote speaker working at the intersection of technology and accessibility. At the age of 17, Salvatto created Hearlo, a free communication app that has helped more than 500,000 people with speech, hearing and motor disabilities.
“Muhammad Ali called himself the greatest long before the world agreed. That was not arrogance. It was a decision to believe before there was proof, and to work until that proof arrived. A seventeen-year-old from Buenos Aires had no reason to believe a school project could reach half a million people. But he believed it anyway… and here we are,” Salvatto said.
Sneha Revanur (22), from San Jose, California, is the founder and president of Encode, an international organization that mobilizes youth for safer and more equitable artificial intelligence, advocating for regulation and the inclusion of youth on AI oversight and advisory boards.
Joseph Nguthiru (28), from Nairobi, Kenya, is the founder of HyaPak, a startup that converts invasive water hyacinth plants into bio-degradable packaging to replace single-use plastics, restoring waterways and creating green jobs for local communities.
Franziska Trautmann (28) started the organization Glass Half Full in New Orleans to recycle glass into sand for coastal restoration and cullet for the manufacturing of new bottles. The team has been backed by research from the National Science Foundation, and has restored thousands of meters of coastline and counting.
“I work every day not just to physically improve our coast, but to inspire others to take action around them. I hope my actions show you that we can all be humanitarians,” Trautmann said.
Jin Dawod (30), from Syria, is the founder and CEO of Peace Therapist, a refugee-led organization providing culturally sensitive mental health and psychosocial support to refugees, displaced people, and host communities, reaching more than 80,000 people across 26 countries.
Gab Mejia (29) is a Filipino photographer, multidisciplinary artist, and environmental engineer who weaves photography, moving image, and ecological design to confront sociopolitical and ecological crises. His work has been published within National Geographic, Vogue, the BBC, and more.
“It has never been more pertinent, more urgent, for us as storytellers, the photographers, the artists, the poets… and journalists to speak truth to power, and to speak against the environmental and social atrocities we continue to face,” Meija said.
As part of this year’s celebration, Muhammad Ali Center Co-Founder, Interim President and CEO Lonnie Ali announced a partnership with Burbank, California-based BRC Imagination Arts that will reimagine the Center to shape how visitors feel, think, and act.
BRC Imagination Arts was selected through a competitive process in 2025 and will guide the reimagining of the Ali Center from vision to delivery. Their portfolio includes the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Merritt Island, Florida and the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation in Dearborn, Michigan.
BRC Imagination Arts will share further details of the vision on Tuesday, November 10.
The 2026 Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Awards are made possible through the generous support of corporate and individual donors, including this year’s Platinum Level sponsor, Brown-Forman, and Silver Level sponsor, ESPN. The Muhammad Ali Center also extends its sincere appreciation to the many additional sponsors and supporters whose generosity and commitment make this celebration possible and help advance the Center’s mission to inspire courageous leadership, foster compassion, and empower future generations to create meaningful change.
About the Muhammad Ali Center
The Muhammad Ali Center is a 501(c)(3) that prides itself on being much more than a museum. As an athlete, a humanitarian, a global voice and man guided by faith, Muhammad Ali embodied a pursuit and belief in the greatness found in all people. Founded in 2005 by Lonnie and Muhammad Ali in his hometown of Louisville, the Center is dedicated to inspiring greatness, cultivating curious and courageous leaders and growing a more compassionate world.
About BRC Imagination Arts
BRC Imagination Arts is a full-service strategy, experiential design, and production company that transforms how people feel, think, and connect. For 45 years, BRC has turned cultural and brand stories into destinations built for lasting change, powered by Deep Story™ and guided by a creative philosophy called Magic with Heart: the belief that imagination and precision belong together, and that the best work moves hearts and moves numbers in equal measure. Our portfolio includes the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, Savannah College of Art & Design, Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, and California Science Center. Proudly independent, with more than 500 international awards, BRC remains the most trusted name in transformational experience design.
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Media Contact:
Dustin Vogt
Muhammad Ali Center
dvogt@alicenter.org
502.296.3161
Media Contact on behalf of BRC Imagination Arts:
Alan McGarrie
Founder, Smiddy Marketing
alan@smiddymarketing.com
+44 (0)793 339 4393
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/897711fd-36d6-4b1c-b2ab-a37f01d13a01
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