An inaugural race celebrating the life of a 9-year-old Lenexa boy killed in a car crash will take place Saturday morning at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas.
Starting at 8:30 a.m. outside Sporting KC’s home stadium, located at 1 Sporting Way at the Legends, the inaugural Nolan Davidson Champions Run will take place to raise money for youth soccer scholarships.
An avid sports fan, Nolan Davidson loved both playing sports, as a member of the De Soto Thunder basketball team, the Lenexa-based youth sports group Herd Running and captain of his KC Fusion Soccer Club.
The race was created to honor Davidson, who died on Dec. 7, 2023, from injuries sustained in a two-car crash near Johnson Drive and Bell Road in Shawnee. (A Kansas City, Kansas, man last month pleaded guilty to two felony counts, including second degree murder, for driving drunk and causing the wreck. He’s set to be sentenced in January.)
“Nolan was a bright light in our lives — his energy, kindness and love for life were truly infectious,” Aaron and Ashlee Davidson, Nolan’s parents, wrote in a statement to the media. “This race is a way for us to celebrate his legacy and the impact he had on everyone who knew him.”
Proceeds from the event will go toward the Nolan Davidson Foundation, in partnership with KC Fusion Soccer Club, to provide youth soccer scholarships.
The race is for everyone
The family-friendly event is meant for people of levels of athleticism, from runners to walkers to people with strollers.
Participates have the option of doing a 5K, 10K and 1.1 mile race, on a course around Children’s Mercy Park and the neighboring Kansas Speedway.
The Davidsons want to use the event as a way of uniting people.
“Through the Champions Run, we hope to bring people together not only to remember Nolan, but also create something positive and lasting in his honor,” they wrote. “We want this to be a reflection of the joy Nolan brought to so many in his life and a reminder of the power of community.”
People can register at the Champions Run website.
This is the latest event to honor Nolan’s memory
While Nolan was hospitalized late last year, hundreds of people showed up at Sar-Ko-Par Trails Park in Lenexa for a benefit walk/run in Nolan’s honor.
After his death, the Davidson family asked that any donations in Nolan’s honor be made to Children’s Mercy Hospital Toy Drive in 2023.
In May, Christa McAuliffe Elementary in the Shawnee Mission School District, where Nolan attended school, dedicated the school’s new garden in Nolan’s memory.
Thank you Monticello Trails Middle School Cheerleaders. 💙@MTMS_Athletics pic.twitter.com/2RD4KFdxqv
— Aaron Davidson (@TrackDavidson) December 3, 2024
The Davidsons are ‘overwhelmed’ by response
In his speech during Nolan’s funeral, Aaron Davidson said the most honorable thing someone can do in Nolan’s memory is to reflect his spirit of being good, nice, humble and hardworking.
“Be a great teammate. Be a great classmate. Be coachable. Be a great friend. Be a great parent. Be a great brother or sister. Be a great coach. Be compassionate. Be grateful. Be faithful. Be good, be nice, work hard and be humble. And be like Nolan,” he said.
The Davidsons are grateful for all of the support leading up to the event, they wrote in a statement to the media.
“We are overwhelmed with gratitude for the love and support our community has shown in helping us honor Nolan’s memory through the Nolan Davidson Champions Run,” they stated.
Go deeper: Man pleads guilty to felony charges in crash that killed 9-year-old boy
