Lesa France Kennedy, (born Lesa Dawn France on May 24, 1961) is an American businesswoman and Executive Vice Chair of

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...

Education and career

Kennedy received a B.A. in Economics and a B.A. in Psychology from

Duke University Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...

in 1983. Kennedy joined ISC in 1983 and was named to the board of directors one year later. She served as ISC's secretary from 1987–96 and as its treasurer from 1989-96. From that point until April 2003, Kennedy was the company's executive vice president. She was then appointed president of ISC after her father,

Bill France Jr. William Clifton France (April 4, 1933 – June 4, 2007), better known as Bill France Jr. or Little Billy, was an American motorsports executive who served from 1972 to 2000 as the chief executive officer (CEO) of NASCAR, the sanctioning body of ...

stepped down. Most recently, Kennedy was named chief executive officer in April 2009. Kennedy has been ranked as one of the most influential women in sports by numerous publications. ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

'' called her "The Most Powerful Woman in Sports" in 2009. In 2006, she was listed as one of the "25 Most Influential People in NASCAR" by the

Charlotte Observer ''The Charlotte Observer'' is an American newspaper serving Charlotte, North Carolina, and its metro area. The Observer was founded in 1886. it has the second-largest circulation of any newspaper in the Carolinas. It is owned by Chatham Asset ...

, "Most Influential Woman in Sports Business" by Volusia Flagler Business Report, and was "Female Sports Executive of the Year" according to SportsBusiness Journal. In 2016, '' Adweek'' named her one of the "30 Most Powerful Women in Sports".Meet the 30 Most Powerful Women in Sports
Adweek, June 26, 2016. Retrieved June 27, 2016. In 2022, she was named one of Sports Business Journal's "Most Influential Property Pacesetters."

Personal life

Kennedy is married to Bill Christy, CEO of CLASH Endurance, an event endurance sports media company. Kennedy's first husband, Dr. Bruce Kennedy, was killed in a plane in

Sanford, Florida Sanford is a city and the county seat of Seminole County, Florida, United States. It is located in Central Florida and its population was 61,051 as of the 2020 census. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Metropolitan Statistical ...

on July 10, 2007.2019 married Bill Christy, CEO CLASH USA a sports event media company

Five people were killed, including two small children. She is the mother of former NASCAR driver and current SVP of Racing Development & Strategy Ben Kennedy (racing driver), Ben Kennedy.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kennedy, Lesa France 1961 births American motorsport people American women business executives American women chief executives Auto racing executives Duke University Trinity College of Arts and Sciences alumni Living people People from Volusia County, Florida American women sports executives and administrators France family 21st-century American women

Education and career

Personal life

See also

References