SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Women's soccer head coach Jerry Smith and volunteer assistant Brandi Chastain will be two of four Grand Marshals for tomorrow's Santa Clara Parade of Champions along with Carney Lansford and Paul Rosa. The parade will run down Lafayette Street right next to the Santa Clara campus. Festivities start at 9 a.m. with the parade beginning at 11 a.m.

The Parade of Champions has been a time-honored legacy in Santa Clara that began in 1945 but was suspended in 1995 when founder Larry Marsalli retired. A portion of proceeds will go to charitable organization JW House.

Smith, in his 33rd season at the helm of the Broncos, is in the top-5 in wins among NCAA Division I head coaches and has led his team to 28 NCAA Tournaments, 10 College Cups, 10 West Coast Conference titles, and the 2001 national championship. In 2001 he was named the national coach of the year.

Chastain played two years at Santa Clara where she helped the Broncos reach the national semifinals for the first two times in program history in 1989 and 1990. She went on to be a two-time FIFA Women's World Cup champion and a two-time Olympic Gold Medalist with the U.S. Women's National Team. She has been inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame (2018) and Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame (2017).

ABOUT THE PARADE OF CHAMPIONS
Since 1945, the SCPOC has brought Santa Clarans together to showcase their Champions from Sports, Civic and Business leaders, Culture and Arts, to Entertainment and now Tech. The entire city would gather in its Historic Downtown (founded in 1852) to celebrate their heritage, community spirit, and pride every year. It has been one of the longest-running unifying events in the history of Santa Clara. Lifelong Memories were made, and community bonds strengthened for generations to follow.

On September 28, 2019, the Santa Clara Parade of Champions returns to its historic downtown center, and the celebration continues with Custom Floats and Helium Balloons where Art meets Technology, School Marching Bands, Drill and Cheerleading teams, STEAM and Robotic Clubs, Little League Champs, Girl and Boy Scouts, Veterans and ROTC, Dance/Gymnastics Schools, Aquamaids, Olympians and the World Champion Santa Clara Vanguard. The list is long because Santa Clara historically has always attracted diversity—now even more so as the center of Silicon Valley.

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