| Name | Alabama Sports Hall of Fame |
| Address | 2150 Richard Arrington Jr BlvdBirmingham, AL 35299 |
| Brief Description | Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in Birmingham, AL |
| Type | Attraction |
| Category | Hall of Fame Museum |
| Description | Established in 1967 by an act of the state legislature, the Hall of Fame had its first induction class in 1969. The first class included the likes of Paul “Bear” Bryant, Ralph “Shug” Jordan, Joe Louis Barrows, Don Hutson, Johnny Mack Brown, Michael Donahue, James Hitchcock, and Coach Frank Thomas.
The Hall of Fame has been recognized as one of the premier state sports halls of fames in the country. The list of inductees is Who's Who in the world of sports. Some of our inductees’ achievements include:
•Two of the top four-homerun hitters of all time are from Alabama. Mobile’s Hank Aaron is number two (755) and Birmingham’s own Willie Mays is number four (660).
•Two of the greatest track and field athletes of all time are from Alabama. Jesse Owens, from Danville, won four Gold medals in the 1936 Olympics. Carl Lewis, from Birmingham, won nine gold medals. They are two of three men in Olympic history to win four gold medals in track and field in one Olympics.
•The starting quarterbacks for the first three Super Bowl Champions are in our Hall of Fame. Bart Starr quarterbacked the Green Bay Packers to victories in Super Bowls I and II. Joe Namath quarterbacked the New York Jets to victory in Super Bowl III; and Kenny Stabler from Foley, AL; led the Oakland Raiders to Super Bowl victory in 1976. All three quarterbacks were named MVP’s of their respective Super Bowls.
•The person who held the heavy weight championship the longest – eleven years - is Joe Louis Barrow (the Brown Bomber), from LaFayette.
•When ESPN did the their award winning show Sports Century, nine of their Top 100 Greatest Athletes of the last century are in our Hall of Fame. Out of their top fifteen athletes, five are in our Hall of Fame and of their top ten two are from Alabama. They are Jesse Owens, Hank Aaron, Joe Louis, Willie Mays, and Carl Lewis.
•Alice Coachman Davis was the first African American woman ever to win an Olympic Gold Medal in track and field. She won the high jump in the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, England. Her record jump of five feet six inches lasted eight years.
•Vonetta Flowers is the first Black athlete in the world (male or female) to win an Olympic Gold Medal in the Winter Olympics. She won her gold medal in 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City in two person bobsledding.
•Mia Hamm holds the record as the world’s all-time leading scorer (male or female) with 158 goals scored in international competition.
•Bryan Kirkland Class of 2012 is the first paralympian inducted into the ASHOF.
•There were eleven women inductees in the Hall of Fame. They are: Leah Marie Rawls Atkins (water skiing), Jennifer Chandler Stevenson (diving), Reita Clanton (team handball), Alice Coachman Davis (track and field), Vonetta Flowers (bobsledding), Virginia Derby Grimes (golf), Janelle Kirtley Godfrey (water skiing), Mia Hamm (soccer), Sarah Patterson (gymnastic coach), Jo Ann Prentice (golf) and Jo Jo Starbuck (ice skating).
•Two of the top three coaches in Division 1A college football with the most wins are in the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame. They are Bobby Bowden (375) second and Paul “Bear” Bryant (323) third.
•The Heisman Trophy, which is presented to the best college football player each year, is named for John Heisman (1970 inductee), who coached at Auburn from 1895-1900.
•Presently there are two Heisman Trophy winners in the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame (Pat Sullivan, Auburn University 1971 winner, inducted into ASHOF 1981, and Vincent “Bo” Jackson, Auburn University 1985 winner, inducted into ASHOF in 1996).
•There are 21 sports represented in the Hall of Fame. Football dominates with 150 inductees and baseball is next with 57.
•Ray Scott, the founder of B.A.S.S., was our 1990 Distinguished Alabama Sportsman. |
| Phone 1 | (205) 323-6665 |
| Email | info@ashof.org |
| Handicapped Accessible | Yes |
| Time Allowance | Hour and half |
| Cost | Adults $5.00 Seniors $4.00 Students $3.00 |
| Hours | 9:00-5:00 Monday-Friday |
| Website | www.ashof.org |
| Social Links |   |
| Local Visitor Bureau | www.birminghamal.org |
| Last Updated | 6/8/2012 |
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