Dave Behar

Handling Brand, Business Development, Media and Integrated Marketing, ION CEO Dave Behar, is the “Chief Executive Athlete” for The Run™.

Aside from being a lifelong competitive athlete, including running, surfing and team sports, in his youth, Behar, a brother and parents traveled around the country to 45 states during six months, including Alaska and Canada – in an RV, serving as one of his many inspirations in supporting and helping deliver The Run.

Then he met Dr. Dennis Godby and Dr. Rebecca Asmar.

As Founder and CEO of the leading edge ION Network “enabling mill.ions to succeed”, Behar leads the original programming, business, marketing and visual development of the world’s largest focused, sports specific channel network, the ION Sports Network (featuring over 150 different sports), ION Kids, ION Family Network, ION Health Network and the ION Local Network, serving thousands of communities worldwide.

“The Network of Champ.ions” simply enables a visionary platform for health practictioners, events, brands, shows, videos and individuals to connect and maximize their reach to the market they wish to engage in. Like The Run™, ION supports sports and many worthy causes, education, health and nutrition activation initiatives that boldly improve and empower youth and families. The ION Awards, as another example – in both Sports and Nutrition – honors innovation and performance to deserving companies.

ION Studios now successfully creates and efficiently broadcasts local news, sports, nutrition and hundreds of lifestyle topics across its own network of over 25,000 Local Channels, mobile, and syndication of shows to thousands of affiliates, available worldwide and in all U.S. and Canadian cities.

An early pioneer and champion of leading edge technology, new media, and e-commerce, Dave routinely enjoys spreading the gospel about multi-platform brand and business development, original programming, personalization, personal channels and the convergence of mobile, television and Internet – which led to the early formation of ION and its well-known call letters and personality.

Prior to founding ION, Dave founded and led Avenue I, a profitable brand, sports and technology consultancy, including Powerbar, Molten, adidas, 24 Hour Fitness, 1996 Atlanta Centennial Olympic Games, and other major events and iBrands, a consortium of focused sports brands that preceded the ION Network, and now sells successfully in focused retailers nationwide.

Running, Team and Action Sports has always been in his DNA. Fresh out of San Diego State University, Dave founded, led and then later sold the wildly successful volleyball sportswear and product brand pioneer I DIG, which he grew to International distribution. In addition to pioneering “volleywear”, he invented the category of beach volleyball footwear and revolutionized the optic beach volleyball market leading to major endorsements and global retail sales leadership. The famous “Pro Pink” and “Kong Block” (endorsed by Randy Stoklos) helped lead the ball category and Behar later designed signature volleyballs for Kent Steffes and Karch Kiraly.

Behar has been not only instrumental in producing multiple high level running, lifestyle and Action Sports events, he was a critical factor in developing the sport of Pro Beach Volleyball in Australia, helping launch the Tour with Nestle Ice Cafe.

 Closer to home, He created the first and nationally televised Legends of Pro Beach Volleyball with Chris Marlowe (introducing Coors Light into televised Pro Beach Volleyball) and created the first Six Man Pro Beach Volleyball World Championships.

Behar, as a player, had multiple victorious “non-tour” moments – including playing backrow specialist for the late Wilt Chamberlain on a successful Manhattan Beach Surf Festival team led by Olympic Gold Medal Coach Gary Sato, and a top five finish in Estero Beach.

At Avenue I and its predecessor Behar Network, Dave designed the famous PAC-10 Conference (now the PAC-12) identity / brand, and created the PAC-10’s successful Licensing and Media Promotion practice from scratch, which led to the formation of PAC-10 Properties, now operated by FOX Sports. The PAC-12, the Conference of Champions” is the country’s winningest Athletic Conference in the NCAA and enjoys the largest television and multi-media collegiate conference contract in sports today.

Dave also created the comprehensive brand development and marketing profile for McDavid, the leader in Sports Medicine and Protective Apparel, including HexPad Technology – effectively enabling a new $100+ million category that has quickly become “standard issue” for most athletes in the NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL, Professional and Youth Lacrosse, Soccer, Volleyball, MMA, Rugby, and Major Universities worldwide – combined with unmistakable retail placement and demand. Dave’s signing and development of key events and endorsement relationships including NBA’s Dwyane Wade helping trigger additional explosive growth.

Later, for client Victory, Dave created the revolutionary new category “Performance Surf Footwear”, appropriately named “Vooties”, combining warmth, traction, protection and performance attributes for surfers, Stand-Up Paddlers and other water sports athletes worldwide.

HotMail also benefited from Dave at its early stage, as he built many of the “killer apps” business development, subscription models and marketing plans that enabled early financial success and helped lead to the eventual historic $400 million dollar acquisition by Microsoft.

In his spare time, Dave enjoys spending quality time with his awesome wife and kids, traveling, surfing, playing multiple sports, running, coaching youth, designing homes and testing his healthy culinary “skills” on friends.