Duno set to join Latin American Hall of Fame

IZOD IndyCar Series driver Milka Duno will be inducted into the Latin American International Sports Hall of Fame during ceremonies Jan. 30 in Laredo, Texas.

Duno will be the first Venezuelan athlete inducted into the Hall of Fame, which was founded in 1975 to recognize individuals who have excelled in sports and/or have contributed to the promotion of sports and goodwill in the Latino community.

"The Latin American International Sports Hall of Fame is proud and honored to have selected Milka Duno as a 2010 inductee," Hall of Fame founder Pitin Guajardo said. "Milka was selected for her racing achievements, her personal excellence in education and her passion in stressing the importance of education to students of all ages."

Duno, who has made 27 IZOD IndyCar Series starts, was the first Hispanic woman to compete in the Indianapolis 500 and IZOD IndyCar Series. Duno has many other racing accolades, and as Guajardo noted her work through the Milka Way program was a factor in the Hall of Fame selection.

Duno, a qualified Naval Engineer with four master's degrees, started the Milka Way program and wrote the award-winning bilingual book "Go, Milka, Go!" to stress the importance of education to students. She will speak to students at United High School in Laredo on Jan. 29.

"I am very passionate about education and I want to do everything that I can to inspire students of all ages to study hard and aim for the stars," Duno said. "As a young girl growing up many athletes served as inspirations for me -- as athletes have for millions of children all over the world-- and I feel that it is important for young people to have these sources of inspiration. I never imagined that one day I might be recognized in this way.

"It is both a privilege and a responsibility to be included among all the other Hall of Fame alumni and I will do my best to live up to that privilege and responsibility."

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The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season begins March 14 with the Sao Paulo Indy 300 on the streets of Sao Paulo, Brazil. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at noon (EDT) by VERSUS. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season opens with the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg March 28 on the streets of St. Petersburg. The race will air live on indycar.com