The Business of
Running Events

Jeff will use his inspiring style and compelling story to teach your audience how to communicate with more purpose, power and impact. Learn how to inspire the science behind trust to tap into ways to be an influential communicator in any setting, be it personal or professional. Jeff is one of today’s leading experts in the art and science of effective communication.

https://jeffbloomfield.com/

Nikkia Reveillac is an innovator, speaker, and visionary with an incredible portfolio that includes Director of Insights for Colgate Palmolive, Head of Research for Twitter, and Director for Consumer Insights for Netflix.

She is the founder and host of the podcast “Culturally Unfit” which explores cultural expectations of how you should look, feel or behave when navigating your career journey and in March 2021, she helped to launch an initiative (IG: @WhoSheFeelSheIs) that is focused on helping women across the Caribbean diaspora traverse their unique leadership paths.

Nikkia attributes her success as a leader to her love for building collaborative relationships with her business partners and her hunger to deeply understand what drives the diverse individuals on her team. She shows up authentically as a challenger of the status quo with a global POV, thanks to her early career in dance, her Caribbean upbringing, her experience working in four countries and leading teams across four Continents.

She is an incredible powerhouse who can still be found dancing, with her husband and two daughters.

Jono Bacon is a leading community and collaboration strategy consultant, author, and speaker. He previously led community at Canonical, GitHub, and XPRIZE, and works with a broad range of clients from large enterprises to early-stage startups to help them build engaging, productive communities. He is the author of six books, including the award-winning ‘People Powered: How communities can supercharge your business, brand, and teams‘, is a columnist at Forbes, and published in Harvard Business Review, Fortune, Entrepreneur, and elsewhere. He is an active speaker, having keynoted 80+ conferences around the world, and an active investor and advisor in companies including Coda, AlienVault, Mautic, and others.

https://www.jonobacon.com/about/bio/

After spending six years working with Race Directors at an agency level, David joined Race Roster in April of 2022. He oversees the company’s marketing efforts and also focuses his time on the development of new strategies and initiatives that assist in driving growth for events.

Xi Yan is a digital marketing specialist, brand expert and business strategist with more than a decade of experience working alongside clients across various industries, including ASICS, Running USA, and Stanley Black & Decker.

As CEO at RedRhino, an integrated marketing and branding agency located in London, Ontario, Canada, Xi utilizes his strong business, research, and analytical expertise to drive impactful and measurable outcomes for every client.

By combining in-depth digital marketing knowledge and innovative business acumen, Xi harnesses a results-driven marketing approach that allows him to craft strategies that directly affect corporate goals and performance

Kimberley Sherwood is a seasoned nonprofit coach, consultant, and facilitator with a passion for good governance. She thrives in the "messy gray" of nonprofit board work, guiding organizations through complex challenges to achieve clarity and success. A trusted advisor in the community, she empowers boards and executives to lead with vision and accountability. Kimberley and her husband, who's also her business partner, have called the Pikes Peak Region home for more than three decades, raised their beloved family here, and she serves on several local and regional advisory boards. She's excited to share her knowledge and experience with us!

Bryan Derbyshire is a visionary entrepreneur and the founder of Protecht, a leading technology company specializing in reinventing refunds for today’s economy. With a keen understanding of the intersection between technology and risk mitigation, Bryan has spearheaded Protecht’s growth from inception to becoming a trusted partner for organizations worldwide. Under his leadership, Protecht has developed cutting-edge platforms that empower businesses to proactively identify and manage risks, driving operational efficiency and ensuring resilience in today’s dynamic business environment. Bryan’s innovative approach and strategic leadership have positioned Protecht as a frontrunner in the industry, revolutionizing how businesses navigate and mitigate risks in an ever-evolving landscape.

J.T. Service, an accomplished entrepreneur and visionary in the sports industry, currently leads as CEO of Soul Focus Sports and serves as the Managing Partner of Run Local Ventures. With a keen eye for innovation and a deep understanding of the sports marketing landscape, J.T. has spearheaded numerous successful partnerships and campaigns, collaborating with leading brands including Hoka, Under Armour, ASICS, GoPro, and Red Bull. 

Under J.T.’s leadership, Soul Focus Sports has recently expanded its portfolio to include collaborations with prominent professional sports franchises such as Bay FC and the San Francisco Giants, significantly enhancing their fan experiences and implementing groundbreaking grassroots marketing strategies. 

In addition to his achievements with Soul Focus Sports, J.T. has also been instrumental in driving growth and securing strategic investments for Run Local Ventures. The recent investment from Stephen and Ayesha Curry's Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation and the San Francisco Giants mark a significant milestone to level up the running industry.

Sara Grauf oversees experience development for the San Francisco Giants organization, leading a team to deliver an industry leading end-to-end guest experience. Sara thrives at the intersection of business development and strategic implementation, navigating complex operational challenges while pursuing innovative, experience-driven revenue opportunities. She led operations for the organization’s three World Series celebrations and was responsible for the commercial strategy and delivery of the first-ever ticketed spectator program for the America’s Cup, Rugby Sevens World Cup, and the Giant Race, the flagship health and wellness initiative for the club. In addition to events-related business development, Grauf oversees the club’s food & beverage program, transportation, spring training operations and public realm programming for the Mission Rock development, San Francisco’s newest waterfront neighborhood. 

Driven by a passion for people management and organizational development, Sara has a distinct understanding of the impact of leadership dynamics on business results. Her leadership style is rooted in transparency and dedicated to creating dynamic leadership opportunities for developing staff. 

As a Bay Area native and lifelong athlete herself, Sara is deeply embedded in the Bay Area sports  community. She is a founding investor in Bay FC (the Bay Area’s NWSL franchise) and is actively consulting with the Bay Area Host Committee on experience strategy for the 2025 NBA All Star Game, the 2026 Super Bowl, and the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Laurent Leloup discovered a passion for trail running early in life, and has since worked to become an expert in the discipline. In 2019, he started Trail Running Consulting (TRUC), while continuing his work as a Business Insights Manager, until five years later when he was finally able to turn his complete focus on running and developing the sport As a runner, race director, Project Manager of Trail at the Swedish Athletics Federation and member of the KUL ultra running committee, he continues to develop trail running at both national and international levels to increase accessibility, elevate the quality of the events, and drive innovation within the space.

Laurent will be sharing outcomes from his research, and highlighting the most relevant insights from a business perspective of the trail running sport, and its evolution.

Chris Heuisler is the Senior Brand Manager and Global Run Concierge for Westin Hotels and Resorts. Chris recently lead Westin’s new partnership with Strava, but spends the majority of his time working on the brand’s internal strategy for wellbeing. Prior to joining Westin, Chris was a Tier 4 Trainer for Equinox with a focus on running and cardiovascular strength. Chris lives in Belmont, MA with his wife, Rachel, and two children, Shane (14) and Kiki (11.)

In the business of mass participation sports since 2008, Alessio is Head of Running at World Athletics, the World Governing Body for the #1 Olympic sport. He supervises all programmes and processes that relate to out-of-stadium running – from competition management and calendars to course measurement and certification, from campaigns to running e-sports, from masters to trail running – and in general for all relationships with the running industry. Also, he’s responsible for the mass participation piece of various World Athletics Championships. Alessio has previously held positions in marketing, competitions and development at European Athletics, UCI, the Rome Marathon, the Rock ‘n’ Roll Liverpool Marathon and the European Cyclists’ Federation. Bachelor in Media Studies, MSc in Sport Management & Communication, Postgrad in Sports Administration and Technology at Lausanne's IOC-founded AISTS Academy.