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One of the best things about sports is when they surpass simply being sports and are used for the betterment of something a bit more worthwhile. Sports have always had a major impact in a wide variety of ways, including helping overcome many unfortunate cultural barriers and stigmas. Another area where sports have helped is the fight to raise awareness and money for just causes, such as fighting cancer.
So with that being said, bravo to Wisconsin Badgers head coach Bo Ryan.
This past Wednesday the third annual "Shooting Down Cancer" event commenced at Kohl Center in attempt to raise money for cancer research. Bo Ryan and family embraced the event fully, donating $1 for every fan that attended the event, $10 for every made free throw and $1000 for any successful half-court shot. Besides Ryan's donations, four organizations decided to match however much the Ryan family donated.
The end result?
Bo Ryan's family ended up donating $53,355, leading to a total of $276,755 after the four organisations made their matching donations. The money will be donated to the Coaches vs. Cancer and American Cancer Society charities.
"There are so many families that I’ve seen devastated by cancer...I just figured if we can do anything to help the cause, let’s do it,"" mentioned Ryan.
The event's $276,755 was a new high, following up last years $66,150 and 2012's $41,279.
Wisconsin Basketball raises over $275,000 for cancer research http://t.co/sn5Y0p7tlU #MakeBoPay pic.twitter.com/ZlS27JBpt4
— Colosseum Athletics (@ColosseumAthl) October 23, 2014
Also, props to students like Mitchell Hunger, who brought their game and successfully converted a half-court shot, leading to a $1000 donation from the Ryan family (which was also matched by four organizations, meaning each half-court shot was essentially worth a $5000 contribution).
UW student Mitchell Hunger is all smiles after making a halfcourt shot, which means a $1,000 donation in #makebopay pic.twitter.com/eSkNW6bfg6
— Rob Hernandez (@RobHernandezWSJ) October 22, 2014