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WISE ANNOUNCES 2017 WOMEN OF THE YEAR AWARD RECIPIENTS
 

January 11, 2017 (New York, NY) — Women in Sports and Events (WISE), the leading voice and resource for women in the business of sports, today announced the recipients of this year's 2017 WISE Women of the Year Award, which will be presented at the 23nd Annual WISE Women of the Year Awards Luncheon on June 22, 2017 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City.

The 2017 recipients are Doris Burke, Basketball Analyst and Reporter, ESPN; Buffy Filippell, Founder, TeamWork Online; and Amy Trask, NFL Analyst, CBS Sports Network. WISE members across the country voted to award these honorees for their accomplishments and significant contributions to the business of sports.

"The 2017 WISE Women of the Year Award recipients are true trailblazers in the sports industry, shattering ceilings for women in broadcasting, talent recruiting and the front office, and continuing to exemplify the dynamic work this award represents," said Kathleen Francis, national chair of WISE. "We are truly honored to celebrate the resilience and excellence of Doris Burke, Buffy Filippell and Amy Trask at this year's luncheon."

Read on for more information about this year's honorees:

• Doris Burke, Basketball Analyst & Reporter | ESPN — Doris Burke has covered basketball for ESPN since March 1991, calling men’s and women’s college and pro contests spanning the NBA, women’s basketball regular season and NCAA championship, and men’s basketball regular season and Championship Week. Since 2003, Burke’s roles and assignments for NBA coverage have expanded to include sideline reporting and game analysis during select ESPN NBA telecasts. She also serves as a sideline reporter for NBA playoff games and the NBA Finals on ABC. Burke previously served as a WNBA analyst for the New York Liberty on MSG Network and was also a women’s college basketball analyst for CBS Sports and Westwood One Radio. The first woman to call a Knicks radio/television broadcast (2000) and a Big East men’s basketball game on television, Burke was also a frequent columnist for Basketball Times magazine and Eastern Basketball magazine, and a contributing writer for the website Center for Sports Parenting. A former basketball standout at Providence College who held seven records upon graduation, Burke additionally served as an assistant coach at her alma mater from 1988 to 1990. Raised in Manasquan, N.J., Burke graduated from Providence College with a degree in health service administration/social work and also earned her master’s in education at Providence.


• Buffy Filippell, Founder, TeamWork Online — Buffy Filippell is the founder and creator of TeamWork Online, a first-of-its-kind web-based talent recruiting system focused on connecting candidates and employers in sports and live events. In 2016, TeamWork Online celebrated the remarkable achievement of its 100,000th successful candidate-employer match. Prior to starting TeamWork Online, Filippell was the first female agent at IMG and one of the first recruiters to focus on sports while at global search firm Korn/Ferry. Through these "firsts," she has formed a legacy that reaches across nearly every professional sport, multiple collegiate programs and the leading live event producers in the world. Over the years, Filippell has been honored by several organizations, including Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield with its Progressive Woman Award; the Cleveland chapter of WISE; and her alma mater, Indiana University, where she was a member of the women's varsity tennis team and participated in the 1974 USTA Women's National Collegiate Tennis Championships. A proponent of education, Filippell serves on the Dean's Associates Board for Indiana University's School of Public Health.


• Amy Trask, NFL Analyst, CBS Sports Network — Amy Trask joined CBS Sports Network in 2013 as a studio analyst on That Other Pregame Show and serves as a panelist on We Need to Talk, the first-ever nationally televised all-female sports show. She also contributes to The NFL Today on CBS. Prior to joining CBS, Trask was one of the highest-ranking women in American professional sports, serving as CEO of the Oakland Raiders from 1997 until 2013. As CEO, Trask was involved in all non-football business matters and operations for the team, including team representation at league meetings. During her tenure, the Raiders won four division championships (1990, 2000, 2001 and 2002) and one AFC championship (2002). Trask joined the Raiders as an unpaid intern during law school, her first step toward becoming the NFL's first female front-office executive. She also served as a trusted adviser to late Raiders owner Al Davis, known for treating her and others on his team without regard to gender, race and age. Trask shared her experiences at the Raiders in her book You Negotiate Like a Girl: Reflections on a Career in the National Football League. Trask is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, where she earned a degree in political science and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, and received her law degree from the USC Gould School of Law. She sits on the board of directors for Tony La Russa's Animal Rescue Foundation.

Click here to see a full list of WISE Women of the Year honorees from past years, and here for more information about this year's luncheon.

About WISE
WISE (Women in Sports and Events), is the leading voice and resource for professional women in the business of sports. Through ongoing meetings, special events, and mentoring and educational programs, WISE aims to offer its members the opportunity to gain valuable industry insights and connections that can provide them with a competitive advantage in their current position and as they advance in their careers. Founded in 1993, WISE is a national membership organization and registered 501(c)(3) public charity headquartered in New York City, with chapters in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Houston, Los Angeles, NYC Metro, Pittsburgh, San Diego, San Francisco/Bay Area, South Florida and Washington, D.C. For more information on WISE, please visit WISEworks.org.