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AMERICAN CENTURY CHAMPIONSHIP

July 16, 2009

STATELINE, NEVADA

PHIL WEIDINGER: I think if you've been out on the golf course and looked around, you've all seen there's a distinctively different look here at Edgewood Tahoe this year, with the bright yellow adorning much of the tournament signage. That's because of the special initiatives that the tournament has undertaken in conjunction with the Lance Armstrong Foundation.
With us now to provide insight and detail are the principals involved, Jon Miller, Vice President Programming NBC Sports; Mark Killen, American Century Investments, and Doug Ulman. Doug, thank you for joining us as well.
I'd like to hand it over to Jon Miller.
JON MILLER: Thank you, Phil. As many of you know, this is, in case you've had your head in the sand, this is our 20th year in beautiful Lake Tahoe for the American Century Championship.
And beginning about 10 years ago we made the decision to have a national umbrella charity for the event. And we've had several great organizations that we've been able to partner with.
In the past four years, through American Century, we've identified one of the leading organizations in this country, which is the Lance Armstrong Foundation to promote cancer awareness. And we're proud to be part of it. And so that's what our main focus is this year.
You'll see in the tournament on site obviously a lot of things have been added, whether it's the yellow flag sticks. Our volunteers are all in yellow. Our talent will be wearing yellow shirts when they're on the air. There are yellow hats out there. You'll see a lot of players wearing the Livestrong bracelets.
But also in our broadcasts, American Century has graciously donated a portion of their advertising inventory. NBC is donating some of their additional commercial inventory to run PSAs and mentions for the Lance Armstrong Foundation.
We think it's become a universal effort to promote awareness as well as raise funds for this important cause.
MARK KILLEN: This is really a natural fit for us. Founder, Jim Stowers and his wife, Virginia, are both cancer survivors. And they, years ago, decided to dedicate their entire net worth to really try to find a cure for gene-based diseases like cancer.
And as a result of their incredible generosity and the fact that there's a large ownership position in our company through the Stowers Institute, which does this research, 40 percent of our ongoing profits every year go to fund research for gene-based diseases like cancer.
This is a natural fit for us. We're very inspired by Lance and what he's been able to do. And this year we felt it was very important to really raise the voice of cancer worldwide. Lance went back to cycling. I'm sure we're going to hear from Doug Ulman in a minute about all that.
But we really think this is a disease that needs to stop killing people in the United States and people worldwide. So we're very committed to it, and really appreciate tremendously what Jon Miller and his team have been able to do to help turn this event yellow.
I mean, this is really going to be incredible, particularly when you see it on air with what we're able to do with some of the co-branding that we're doing there.
And this year we've also donated all of our on site assets, all of our playing spots, to the Lance Armstrong Foundation so Doug and his board members can bring in people that can help their cause and raise awareness and funds to fight this disease.
PHIL WEIDINGER: Doug, nice to have you. He's the President and CEO of the Lance Armstrong Foundation. So, Doug, nice to have you here this year.
DOUG ULMAN: Thank you. First and foremost, thanks to Jon and NBC. We're blessed to have this opportunity to be here.
It's a first-class event and one-of-a-kind experience. In our world, the nonprofit philanthropic world, you just don't get opportunities like this to tell your story to such a big audience with such a diverse set of spokespeople and celebrities.
So to NBC, a special thanks. And obviously, as Mark mentioned, our ongoing long-term partnership with American Century is incredibly authentic to the core, in the terms of Mr. and Mrs. Stowers' personal experience with cancer, their incredibly inspiring dedication to funding research with hundreds of millions of dollars of their own money as well as the company's money.
That just doesn't happen every day. So for us to be part of this event, to have the opportunity to tell the world about this disease we call cancer and to tell them how they can get involved and how they can be a part of this global movement that we know today as Livestrong is really special.
So the tournament provides us an opportunity to speak not only to people here on site but also the viewing audience, which will be massive. And it also allows the players an opportunity to support this cause.
And having talked to many of them last night and hearing their personal stories, their family stories with cancer, it just shows us and reminds us that cancer impacts all of us.
One in two men and one in three women will have cancer in their lifetime. Most people don't realize how stark those statistics are; and, yet, with events like this and bringing people together around the cause, we can significantly decrease the amount of suffering and death that this disease causes.
So, again, it's an honor to be here. It was wonderful to talk to so many of the players and hear their personal stories and hear them commit their time and energy and offer to support this cause long term. Special thanks to NBC and American Century. And we're honored to have this opportunity.
PHIL WEIDINGER: Doug, could you share us your experience, how you got into the Lance Armstrong Foundation and Livestrong.
DOUG ULMAN: 13 years ago I was diagnosed with cancer. Actually diagnosed with three different types of cancer, all between my 19th and 20th birthdays. I was a college athlete, a soccer player.
Never in my wildest nightmare would I have fathomed I would hear those words "you have cancer." Yet, looking back now 13 years, it's been a blessing. And I wouldn't change anything.
About a year after I was diagnosed I started a foundation for young people with cancer, because I felt like no one else my age was sort of around to support and offer guidance.
And through doing that, Lance Armstrong sent me an e-mail. And I didn't know him. I had never been to Texas. And I hadn't ridden my bike since I was 10. But I got this e-mail from a guy who said I think we have a lot in common. I'm an athlete, I had cancer, I started a foundation, if there's anything we can do to work together, let me know.
After two years e-mailing back and forth, we got together for a weekend in Austin, talked about what we could do together.
And in January 2001 I moved to Austin to help him with the foundation. It's been a tremendous opportunity. It's so rare in life that you get the chance to be a part of something that could change the world.
I tell people all the time, the organization is both naive audacious. We're naive enough to think that we can do it and audacious enough to try.
I tell our team that if for some reason we don't succeed, if we don't reach our ultimate goal, we will only have saved hundreds of thousands or a few million lives. And to be able to say that you're a part of something like that is incredibly inspiring, and I don't take that for granted.
PHIL WEIDINGER: Questions.

Q. We were out there on the course earlier and Charles was sharing some stuff about getting texts from Lance. Have you been getting communication from him? And if so, what does that say about him, that he's over there trying to prove that he's still on top, yet he's checking on the tournament here to see how things are going?
DOUG ULMAN: I'll say a few things about that. I talk to Lance three or four times a day. Sad to admit that when I talked to him last night at 1:00 in the morning here he was already on his way to ride in the stage today.
But Lance, last summer, called me. I'll never forget. I was sitting on the couch in my parents' home. My grandmother had just passed away and I was spending time with my family.
And Lance called me, and our board of directors had just approved what we know today as the Livestrong Global Cancer Campaign. And Lance was training for a mountain bike race in Colorado. He called and he said, "Do you think if I ride my bike it will help our global campaign?"
I'm sitting there on the couch, my parents are there, my brother and his wife and kids. Nodding my head. Yes/no. I was shocked that he was even considering this.
I got off the phone and my dad said, "Who was that?" I said, "It was Lance." He said, "What was he talking about?" I said, "Oh, don't worry about it."
Six weeks later my dad called me and said, "I think I know what that call was about." It just shows you that Lance is willing to do anything and everything for the cause.
This year he's so motivated by the 28 million people around the world with cancer. He's so relaxed. He's enjoying himself. He's just so in tune with the mission that he's on. And in years past he used to sort of go on lockdown, wouldn't be e-mailing people, be just so focused on the race. But this year it's so much more about the cause.
So he was definitely giving Charles a hard time, texting him. And Charles was giving him a hard time back. But we were able to post a little video from Charles on the web from today's round which I think people will definitely enjoy.
I haven't heard Lance's reaction yet because I think he's probably sleeping by now. But I'm sure I'll hear when he wakes up in the morning.

Q. Doug, how important is it for you as a survivor to really get this up and running, the Global Ambassador Campaign? What's it mean to you on a personal level, too?
DOUG ULMAN: For us, our goal as an organization is not to be the biggest organization in the world. It's to have the biggest impact. And when we looked around the world and researched this disease, what we found was that there was such a great stigma associated with this all over the world.
I'll give you some idea. In certain countries cancer is still thought to be contagious. In other countries cancer is thought to be bad luck. If you're diagnosed, no one will talk to you. The stigma is so great that people are left to suffer and ultimately die in isolation.
And you're a survivor, you understand what this experience is like and how hard it can be, but imagine how much harder it would be if you had no support and resources and tools at your disposal.
So for us, we saw an opportunity to go around the world and really make sure that we could eliminate that stigma. We could show people that cancer is a disease you can survive and we could get governments and corporations to make commitments to how they're going to fight cancer in their own community, their own company, their own country.
So far we've gotten 365 commitments from 65 countries, and we've got a global summit in Dublin at the end of August where these commitments will be unveiled. And so, again, for us to spend a few million dollars around the world and to leverage that into billions of dollars of commitments to this disease, ultimately that's the return on investment that as an organization we strive for.

Q. What's the duration of this commitment with the tournament?
JON MILLER: Our tournament with Lake Tahoe is through 2012, as is our commitment with -- American Century is out through 2012. And my guess is that as long as American Century and NBC are involved, the Lance Armstrong Foundation is going to be the primary beneficiary here. And so we're excited about that.
One of the other things I wanted to talk about that Mark had mentioned earlier: This past fall, when a lot of companies were walking away from golf tournaments and obligations and charitable commitments and stuff like that, American Century not only stayed the course, but they said that it was important that they redouble their efforts to make sure that those organizations that were suffering didn't feel the pinch any more than they already were.
That's a credit to what kind of a company they are. And we're proud to be in business with people like that. And this just goes to show how.

Q. Jon, as a company, as a corporation, why did you decide not to take that tact that so many others have?
JON MILLER: I think this is an event that is a little bit different in the fact that NBC created and owns this event. We were going to make sure that this thing went forward regardless.
We know that a lot of people who were counting on us, not just the players who want to come out here, but the community itself, it's so important to the community here. It's an important thing on our schedule.
We've had it now for 20 years. People look forward to it. A lot of people plan their vacations around it. It's a very entertaining event, but it also gives a chance to get a really good message out there. So we collectively decided that, you know, a lot of other things may go by the wayside.
I'll tell you, NBC's had four golf tournaments that have been dropped by sponsors this year, just because the economy didn't work and they couldn't go forward with it. We were not going to let that happen. And fortunately American Century felt the same way; they weren't going to let it happen.
Golf is a very important driver into communities in what it gives back and what it raises not only in terms of funds and awareness and volunteers and stuff like that, and that's why.
DOUG ULMAN: I would just add, when you're in the social sector, particularly in the healthcare world, times like these, with economic recessions, it's even more critical for organizations like ourselves and many of our partners to gain support and resources and awareness.
So at a time when people are losing their jobs, losing their insurance and needing more of these services that are provided by any number of great nonprofit organizations, for both NBC and American Century to step up is really critical.

Q. Can you give us your evaluation of Charles's swing?
DOUG ULMAN: I will tell you -- first of all, it was wonderful to play with Charles, just a great guy. And he parred No. 6 and No. 7 back to back. And had probably a few other pars that I don't remember.
But he actually -- he was hitting the ball really well. He was hitting the ball really well.
And he was having a lot of fun. So it was great to play -- truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me.

Q. Mark, you mentioned, too, with your founders, the Stowerses, how are they doing? Are they still with us? How are they doing?
MARK KILLEN: They're doing fantastic. They're in their 80s. They're active, though, in what they call Hope for Life. Their mission has moved to the Stowers Institute and their focus is on helping to create enough of an endowment that will carry on for generations and generations.
They didn't want their kids or their grandkids to feel the kind of pain that they felt hearing the diagnosis around cancer, diabetes, dementia and other diseases.
So they set this thing in motion and they're ensuring it's going to have a very healthy future. So their focus is there. And it's very inspiring for all of us at American Century Investments to have them as people who are visionary and doing this sort of thing.
PHIL WEIDINGER: Thank you.

End of FastScripts

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