California Sports Hall of Fame
The California Sports Hall of Fame recognizes athletes, coaches, and members of sports media who have made a "lasting impression to California sports". It was established in 2006 by Christian Okoye, former All-Pro running back for the Kansas City Chiefs. The California Sports Hall of Fame made its first Induction in January 2007. Okoye was inducted in 2016.
History
California Sports Hall of Fame has no permanent headquarters yet. After he was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame, Christian Okoye approached the late Bill Walsh, Tommy Lasorda and coach John Wooden to help establish a Hall of Fame in California. 19 Sports heroes were then inducted in the inaugural ceremony.
Selection process
Nominations for the Hall of Fame are open to the public. The public send in names and final selection belong the board member and then current members. The Hall of Fame, with assistance from the president and founder, notifies the winning nominees once the voting process has been tabulated. If the winning nominees accept their induction, they must then attend the dinner celebration to be officially inducted into the Hall of Fame. If a nominee rejects or is unable to attend their induction, the Hall of Fame inducts the next highest vote getter. If a nominee declines their induction for 3 consecutive years without reason, the nominee will not be eligible for the 3 years.