Megan Schultz played on the women’s basketball team at Randolph-Macon College from 2002 to 2006. After she graduated, wondering how she was going to remain active and stay in shape, she spotted a commercial
for the Sports Backers 8k race. Despite never having done a running event, she immediately signed up.

While attending the Center for Sports Leadership at VCU for her master’s in 2007, she was offered an internship from Sports Backers with the youth basketball tournament that accompanied the annual Colonial Athletic Association championship. When the internship ended, Schultz was asked to stay on part-time.

“Sports provides life lessons and skills that are applicable beyond the court or field,” she says. “All my best relationships came with sports.”

Beginning as event manager, she moved up to director of events and currently oversees Sports Backers’ full organizational portfolio as COO. Along
the way, she’s managed almost every event Sports Backers puts on, including Dominion Energy Riverrock and Allianz Partners Richmond Marathon. “Riverrock showcases and celebrates Richmond’s active outdoor scene,” Schultz says. “It’s both an introduction and a reminder of just how special our outdoor amenities are. Riverrock helped put us on the map for that.”

Known for her ability to rally staff and volunteers and get them excited about an event, Schultz thrives on getting people motivated about daily tasks. The day after the Richmond Marathon, registration for the next year’s event begins. “What’s so special about the marathon is that it allows people to set goals and achieve them,” she says. “The distance is irrelevant because for many, they’re achieving something they thought they couldn’t do.”

She remains grateful that Sports Backers had an internship around basketball to initially pique her interest. “I’m a runner, I chase after my kids in the park, and we do family bike rides,” she says. “But when I’m feeling spunky, I go to the YMCA and play a little pickup basketball.”