Current Exhibits

Heisman corner

The Heisman Trophy won by San Diego's Rashaan Salaam in 1994 is one of five college national player of the year awards on display at the Hall of Champions. Pictured are (left to right) Matt Leinart, USC and now the Arizona Cardinals; Salaam, La Jolla Country Day and Colorado and formerly of the Chicago Bears; and Reggie Bush of Helix High and USC and now with the New Orleans Saints. The other four college national player of the year awards you'll find at the HOC are San Pasqual High alumnus Shannon MacMillan, the Hermann Award for women's soccer in 1995 at Portland; San Diego High alumnus Stephen Neal, Hodge Award for wrestling at Cal State Bakersfield in 1999; San Pasqual High alumnus Tiffany Snow, the Honda Awardo for field hockey at Old Dominion in 2002; and Morse High alumnus Monique Henderson, the Honda Award for track at field at UCLA in 2005.

New Additions to our Motor Sports Exhibit – Jack Jones-Drag Racing

As a Top Gas racer, Jack Jones was so dominant and swift that the current NHRA National-Event winner's trophy was modeled after him in 1969. In the four years he raced on the NHRA National-Event tour (1967-1970), the San Diego competitor won the 1968 and 1970 U.S. Nationals crowns, the 1969 World Finals, and Hot Rod Magazine championships (two in Junior Fuel and two in Top Gas), and was named to the 1971 Car Craft All-Star Team. The San Diego Hall of Champions is proud to be housing the Wall Parks NHRA winner's trophy, along with photographs, plaques, and record breaking certificates awarded to Jack Jones.

Over-the-Line

Over-the-Line is a uniquely San Diego sport played on the beach with its roots in softball. The Old Mission Beach Athletic Club, sponsor of the World Championship Over-the-Line Tournament at Fiesta Island in Mission Bay, opened an exhibit at the San Diego Hall of Champions following the conclusion of the 53rd annual OTL World Championships. The exhibit features a wall with a time line and photos, memorobilia and history of the game that has attracted world-wide media attention for the San Diego summer tradition.

La Jolla Cove Swim Club

The La Jolla Cove Swim Club has partnered with The San Diego Hall of Champions to create an exhibit dedicated to the small area of beach tucked between adjacent sandstone cliffs. The exhibit recognizes and honors San Diegans who have reached milestones in the sport of open swimming, such as Florence Chadwick, Jack Robertson, and Carol Sing among others.

The Gallery Wall

Built around cover photographs from Sports Illustrated Magazine, this show honors those athletes who made the leap from local to national fame.

To date seventy-five Sports Illustrated covers featured thirty-five San Diegans. Bill Walton appeared on the cover fourteen times, Ted Williams seven times, and Billy Chtmer three times, to name only a few. Even with the expansive gallery on our lower level, we cannot show them all. While a plaque will list all thirty-five celebrities, thirty representational covers have been chosen for this particular exhibit.

In addition, memorabilia from a featured athlete will be exhibited in a special case on the lower level. The featured athlete will be changed periodically, giving our guests an opportunity to view some of the Halls most interesting artifacts.

Bird Watching - Tony Hawk in Flight

A true San Diego Legend, Tony Hawk has brought skateboarding into the mainstream of American sports. This exhibit showcases Hawk’s grace and athleticism through artifacts, video & photography.

Tony Hawk, a San Diego native and graduate of Torrey Pines High School is considered the greatest skater in the history of the sport. Tony is the winner of the more than 100 professional contests and has been the inventor of nearly 80 signature moves, including the 900, a mid-air 2_ somersault. He has been victorious at the X-Games, Gravity Games, Goodwill Games and other contests, too numerous to list.

Surfing in San Diego

The exhibit looks at surfing in San Diego from a historical viewpoint, detailing the surfers and board innovators that have shaped the local surf culture. The title sponsor for the exhibit is RT's Longboard Grill; contributing sponsors include Hansen Surfboards, SurfArt.com, and The California Surf Museum.

The display will feature a chronological pictorial history of San Diego surfers and their favorite local surf spots, as well as boards on display from local surfboard innovators such as Bob Simmons, Carl Ekstrom, Larry Gordon, Don Hansen, and Tim Bessell. The centerpiece of the exhibit is a historically accurate but scaled down version of the Windansea Shack. Guarding the Shack is a replica of Mike Dormer's 60's surfing icon statue Hot Curl , complete with a display of folklore about the mythical legend.

Other highlights of the exhibit include a detailed look at The Windansea Surf Club, and their impact not only on local surfing but also on the entire world of surfing beginning in the early 60's. Several vintage surfboards will be on display from the heavy wood planks of the 30's to the ultra lightweight aerodynamic boards of today. Other features include biographic pieces on local surf legends like Charlie Wright, Butch Van Artsdalen, Skip Frye, and Rob Machado. This will be a permanent addition to the Hall of Champions, with the boards on display being rotated periodically throughout the year based on availability.

San Diego Thoroughbred Horse Racing

Relive the excitement of the glory days of Del Mar and Caliente and view the impressive track record of Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Klein.

The Klein family has graciously donated an extensive collection of trophy's from their "run to the top" of the racing world. The hardware includes Winning Colors' Kentucky Derby trophy from 1988, Lady's Secret's Eclipse Award from 1986 and Tank's Prospect's Preakness Stakes Trophy from 1985.

Photo to the left: Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Klein with the Kentucky Derby Trophy.

Baseball Card Art

What's more American than a kid collecting baseball cards? Riding your bike down to your local store to buy a pack of cards, hoping to find your favorite players while enjoying a really bad stick of gum.

Have you ever wondered where all those cards are now? In a box, buried in your garage? Somewhere in your parent's attic? Or maybe your Mom threw them away years ago. And what would be the value of such a childhood collection? For most people, the sentimental value alone would be priceless.

Combining a passion for BASEBALL with an extensive art background, local artist LaVern Brock creates unique, original ART using only BASEBALL CARDS. Trained in graphic arts and illustration, a love for baseball led to the creation of Baseball Card ART. Thousands of cards are gathered, sorted, arranged, cut and glued to make these highly collectable pieces of ART. Each handcrafted piece is unique, from the design to the cards used.

The Hall of Champions will display seven of LaVern Brock's Baseball Card Art pieces through the summer. For more information on LaVern Brock, visit http://www.baseballcardart.com

The Hornet's Nest

The new exhibit dedicated to San Diego's Lincoln Prep, is an interim home to the school's athletic hall of fame. It features a number of historic Hornets, including the well-noted, such as Marcus Allen and Terrell Davis, but also the well-deserving who may have slipped from our recent recollection.

One such may be Lincoln alum Jackie Thompson. An Olympic sprinter while a prep in 1972, Jackie, in fact, never competed for the Hornets. Before the institution of Title IX, women's athletics were not sanctioned by the CIF. Jackie and other female athletes were forced to compete elsewhere – in Jackie's case, the Olympics. Take a more in-depth look at Thompson's struggles and successes at the Hall of Champions.

The Hornet's Nest, as the exhibit has been dubbed, also details Lincoln's amazing NFL connection. Did you know that Lincoln has produced the second most NFL players in the entire nation? Of those, Hornets have represented San Diego in all of the NFL's greatest venues – the Pro Bowl, the Super Bowl, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Find out who, when, and where from colorful photos, videos and interviews.

Finally, the exhibit details the greatest athletes, coaches, heroes, teams, and moments from Lincoln's athletic history. Please visit the Hall and find out for yourself just how much Lincoln has added to San Diego's rich athletic legacy.

The Fencing Exhibit

The San Diego Hall of Champions opened an exhibit in May 2004 detailing the history of fencing in San Diego. Visitors to the museum will learn of the basics of the Medieval sport, as well as the sport's impressive San Diego roots. From its San Diego origins at the downtown YWCA to the recent proliferation of fencing clubs within the county, the sport has never failed to capture local interest. Discover the sport that requires the reflexes of a boxer, the legs of a high jumper and the concentration of a tournament chess player at the San Diego Hall of Champions Fencing Exhibit.

For more information about the exhibit, go to http://pcsfencing.com/news/SDHOC/

San Diego Rugby History

The world's second most popular sport has a strong San Diego connection. The San Diego State Aztec brought home the National Championship in 1987 and the OMBAC Rugby Team has won numerous National Club Titles.

Come see for yourself the impressive tradition of collegiate and club rugby in San Diego, now at the San Diego Hall of Champions.

The Pacific Life Holiday Bowl Exhibit

The spirit of America's Most Exciting Bowl Game has been captured within a new permanent exhibit at the San Diego Hall of Champions.

Since 1978, the teams and players of the Holiday Bowl have been lighting up the scoreboard - close finishes, dramatic plays, and shoot-out scoring has typified the Bowl Game for the past 25 years. Watch OSU's Barry Sanders rush for 5 touchdowns in the 1988 Holiday Bowl or Jim McMahon complete the famous "Hail Mary" pass to Clay Brown to seal an improbable comeback victory for BYU versus SMU in the 1980 Holiday Bowl. Complete details of all the games are here, at the Hall of Champions