Lycos Co-Founder Receives Colorado State University’s College of Business 2004 Distinguished Alumni Award

Jan Horsfall, co-founder of Lycos, successful entrepreneur and a prominent and active Colorado State University alumnus, will be honored as the university’s Alumni Association Honor Alumnus for the College of Business on May 7.

"Over the years I have worked with Jan, he has given more time and energy to Colorado State and the development of our students and student athletes than any other alumnus I know," said Hunt Lambert, director of the Entrepreneurship Center at Colorado State.

Horsfall is dedicated to Colorado State, serving on the College of Business’ Global Leadership Council as well as the Entrepreneurial Leadership Council. In addition, he serves on the Colorado State Alumni Board and is part of the athletic department’s Golden Ram Club.

"I can confidently say, without a doubt, that I have never met a stronger or more energetic supporter of Colorado State than Jan Horsfall," said Randy Churchill-Dowis, principal of the NAI Highland Commercial Group, LLC.

After graduating from Colorado State in 1982, Horsfall began his professional career at The Valvoline Company where he became the youngest vice president of marketing in the company’s 124-year history. Under his leadership, Valvoline won the American Marketing Association’s "Gold Effie," a top national award given to the nation’s leading merchant brands for creating the strongest connection between strong brand support, sharing gains and sales results.

Horsfall left The Valvoline Company in 1994 and joined forces with Ted Philip of Disney and Bob Davis of Wang Computers to found the internet company Lycos. As senior vice president for Lycos, Horsfall introduced "Lycos the Dog," the speedy retriever that symbolized the speed and ease-of-use that Lycos represented. Five years later, Lycos was sold to the Spanish communications company, Terra Networks, S.A., for $7.5 billion.

In 2003, Horsfall started Gelazzi Inc., a food services company that will be the first company in the U.S. to take an Italian ice cream concept national. As chief executive officer of Gelazzi, he is working with Colorado State to bind the concept to the Fort Collins, Colo., location.

Horsfall resides in Colorado Springs with his wife Susan, daughter Britta and two sons, Hunter and Lane.

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