For Immediate Release:                     
July 5, 2011     

Contact:                     
Crystal Carroll, Jimmy Fund
Crystal_Carroll@dfci.harvard.edu
617-632-5379

CAMBRIDGE – Reigning Olympic Champion Yuna Kim is among the featured skaters for the upcoming 41st anniversary show of An Evening with Champions, Harvard University’s figure skating exhibition benefiting the Jimmy Fund, taking place on October 15th and 16th, 2011.

An Evening with Champions was founded in 1970 by former US champion John Misha Petkevich and fellow Harvard University classmate John Powers. Since 1970, it has been run entirely by Harvard University students, and has raised more than $2.5 million for the Jimmy Fund, which supports adult and pediatric cancer care and research at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

This will be Kim’s first appearance at An Evening with Champions, and her first exhibition performance on the east coast of the United States. Kim has demonstrated her commitment to philanthropy on numerous occasions, and will further contribute to charitable causes by skating for An Evening with Champions.

Kim will be joined by numerous other notable skaters to make up the cast of this year’s An Evening with Champions. The cast list is subject to change and is still in development. Currently, ladies include 2010 National Champion and Olympian Rachael Flatt, Christina Gao, Yasmin Siraj, and Harvard student and Olympian Emily Hughes. Men include 2011 National Bronze Medalist Ross Miner, Olympian Shawn Sawyer, Alex Aiken, and Jason Wong. Ice dancers include 2011 World Bronze Medalists Maia and Alex Shibutani, and US Junior Champions Charlotte Lichtman and Dean Copely. Pairs include the legendary Oleg and Ludmila Protopopov, and Marissa Castelli and Simon Shnapir. Olympian and Harvard graduate Paul Wylie will be back to serve as host for An Evening with Champions for the 12th time.

The Saturday show on October 15, 2011 will begin at 7 PM, while the Sunday show on October 16, 2011 will begin at 2 PM. A silent auction will begin 30 minutes before each show, with a prize drawing after intermission. Pediatric cancer patients from the Jimmy Fund Clinic will also have an opportunity to skate with the performers during the weekend of Evening with Champions.

Tickets will be available from the Harvard Box Office on Monday, August 15. Tickets will cost $25 for adults, $12 for seniors or children under the age of 12, and $8 for Harvard students. Group tickets will also be available for purchase. An Evening with Champions will be held at Harvard's Bright Hockey Center, located at 79 North Harvard Street in Allston.

For more information, including updates on performers and ticket sales, visit www.jimmyfund.org/skating or www.aneveningwithchampions.org. An Evening with Champions can also be reached through e-mail at aneveningwithchampions@gmail.com or by phone at (617) 942-1392.

The Jimmy Fund supports Boston’s Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, helping to raise funds for adult and pediatric care and cancer research and improve the chances of survival for cancer patients around the world. It is an official charity of the Boston Red Sox, as well as the official charity of the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association, the Pan-Massachusetts Challenge, and the Variety Children's Charity of New England. Since 1948, the generosity of millions of people has helped the Jimmy Fund (www.jimmyfund.org) save countless lives and reduce the burden of cancer.