Patrick Ryan is chairman and chief executive of Chicago 2016, a position he has held since the bid’s inception in 2006. In addition to overseeing all aspects of the bid, Ryan leads the international campaign to promote Chicago’s candidacy.

Ryan is the founding chairman of Aon Corporation, the largest insurance and reinsurance broker in the world, and a leader in human capital consulting. Ryan started as an entrepreneur, founding an insurance agency that grew to become Aon, which today operates with more than 500 offices in 120 countries.

Ryan is chairman of the board of trustees of Northwestern University. He is also an owner and director of the Chicago Bears Football Club.

Ryan has received a number of accolades throughout his career. In June, 2009, Ryan was awarded a Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Northwestern University. In 2008, he was elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious honorary societies and independent research centers. He was also inducted into the International Insurance Society Hall of Fame. Ryan has received the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans Award and the Order of Lincoln Medallion, the highest award granted by the State of Illinois, for his lifetime of accomplishment.

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