Jim Birrell
Director, Fred Hutch Obliteride
Jim Birrell is a sports management and marketing professional with nearly 40 years of experience. Throughout his career he has been involved in producing premier domestic and international sporting events, including the Summer Olympics (1992, 1996 and 2000), Winter Olympics (1994), Summer Goodwill Games (1994, 1998 and 2001) and Winter Goodwill Games (1999). For 15 year he owned Medalist Sports, an event management company responsible for multiple professional and cause-related cycling events.
Obliteride, the largest community event at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, brings more than 3,000 riders, walkers and runners as well as 700 volunteers together to raise millions of dollars for cancer research. As director, Jim is responsible for setting the vision for Obliteride and delivering ambitious year-over-year growth in participation, number and size of teams, and participant-raised dollars. In addition, Jim uses Obliteride as a platform for community engagement that enhances knowledge of and philanthropic support for innovative research taking place at Fred Hutch.
A native of Houston, Texas, Jim received a Bachelor of Arts degree in business from Southwest Texas University. Jim has two extraordinary children, Abby, a recent graduate from Duke University, and Chandler, who is currently studying for his Masters at Colorado State University. He and his wife, Eileen, live in Kennewick, Washington.
