DENVER >> The last time a U.S. Olympic Committee chief executive resigned, it took a year to find a replacement. The organization can't afford that kind of delay now. UH AD in running
for Olympic CEOUSOC must act quickly or
The candidates
risk losing world's respectBy John Marshall
Associated Press"We need to move quickly to fill the CEO position, but we must find the right person," USOC vice president Frank Marshall said. "At this point, who would want this job?"
Lloyd Ward's departure Saturday -- after months of turmoil sparked by a conflict-of-interest investigation -- brings the total to eight CEOs and presidents for the USOC since 2000. Colorado Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell pressed for more resignations yesterday.
Campbell, part of a Senate committee investigating the USOC, called on chief operating officer Fred Wohlschlaeger and human resources manager Rick Mack to step down, saying they didn't stop Ward's questionable behavior. Both were hired by Ward.
"To me, they've been a party to the indiscretion," Campbell said. "They go back with Lloyd Ward a long time before he came here. They were either a party to it or they should have stepped up and said 'We shouldn't be doing this.' "
As for Ward's replacement, interim USOC president Bill Martin will work with the USOC's executive committee to find an interim CEO, perhaps as soon as this week. Martin himself only came aboard last month, when president Marty Mankamyer quit under pressure.
Jim Scherr, the USOC's chief of sport performance, will handle the day-to-day operations until an interim CEO is named, Martin said late yesterday. Scherr will continue serving his current position and his title and compensation will remain the same, Martin said.
The early list of candidates for the interim CEO role includes former USOC president Bill Hybl, Salt Lake City Organizing Committee executive Fraser Bullock, USOC vice president Paul George and former USOC executive director Harvey Schiller.
Donald Fehr, head of baseball's union, 1984 Los Angeles Games organizing chief Peter Ueberroth, and New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner also have been mentioned as potential USOC saviors.
Steinbrenner wasn't available yesterday to comment on the USOC, and phone calls to Fehr and Ueberroth weren't immediately returned.
Campbell called Hybl his choice for CEO.
"This is going to have to be a person that can command trust from the employees that are down there, from the executive board, from the athletes themselves, and more importantly than that, from the U.S. Congress. I think Bill has all that," Campbell said yesterday. "I think he would see the bigger picture."
Hybl's name pops up every time a president steps down, but he has repeatedly said that he is not interested. USOC president from 1991-92 and 1996-00, he is now CEO of the Olympic Foundation, a nonprofit organization that supports U.S. athletes with grants.
With the Athens Games less than 1 1/2 years away and a Senate committee calling for a major restructuring, USOC officials want to put the past three months of inquiries and resignations behind.
The International Olympic Committee would like that, too. The IOC leadership, in Demark for an antidoping conference, has been monitoring the USOC situation closely.
"It's starting to look a little bit like the Keystone Cops," senior IOC member Dick Pound said yesterday.
The crisis has raised questions about the USOC's privileged revenue-sharing status with the IOC and cast a cloud over New York City's bid for the 2012 Summer Games.
"It's not good for the Olympic movement in the United States, and if it's not good for the Olympic movement in the United States, it's a big concern for all of us," IOC vice president Kevan Gosper said.
Ward's downfall began late last year, when he was accused of trying to steer Olympic business to a company with ties to his brother. No deal was completed, but Ward was reprimanded and stripped of a $184,000 bonus following an ethics investigation.
The furor rose in past months, with daily accusations, the resignations of six top officials and a threat by a top sponsor to pull a multimillion-dollar endorsement deal.
Ward resigned as CEO of Maytag in November 2000 in what the company described as a disagreement with the board of directors over the company's strategic outlook and direction.
Ward then became CEO of iMotors, an Internet seller of used cars, but that company folded just over three months after he started.
Ward did not receive a severance from the USOC, but was given a laptop computer and up to a year of medical benefits, Martin said.
"I think he did the right thing," Campbell said.
BACK TO TOP |
UH AD Frazier
among those in runningA look at some of the people who might be asked to step in at the U.S. Olympic Committee. The group's president resigned last month, and chief executive Lloyd Ward quit Saturday.:
>> Fraser Bullock: Heralded for his work with the Salt Lake City Organizing Committee. Recently started a venture capital business.
>> Donna de Varona: Gold medalist swimmer is highly involved with the Olympics but might not want to take time away from her teenage daughters. Expressed interest in USOC leadership positions in the past.
>> Donald Fehr: The head of the Major League Baseball Players' Association is widely respected among Olympic types, but he has a day job already. There also would be concerns with the baseball union's stance on drug testing.
>> Herman Frazier: USOC vice president, hired last summer as athletic director at the University of Hawaii. Might be better suited as USOC president, rather than CEO.
>> Bill Hybl: USOC president from 1991 to 1992 and 1996 to 2000, he knows the organization inside out and is well-respected in Olympic circles. He is CEO of the Olympic Foundation, which supports American athletes with grants and might not want the headaches that come with the USOC job.
>> George Mitchell: Former U.S. senator who chaired the oversight committee investigating the Salt Lake City Olympic bid scandal. But he's busy with issues related to possible war in Iraq and the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
>> Jim Scherr: The senior managing director of USOC's sport resources is a former Olympic wrestler and executive committee member. Could give the USOC a seamless transition without the learning curve a corporate candidate would need.
>> Harvey Schiller: The former USOC executive director and chairman of New York's 2012 Olympic bid committee always seems to be mentioned when the USOC presidency opens. He is currently CEO of U.S. operations for Assante, which supplies business management services to top sports agents.
>> George Steinbrenner: The New York Yankees' owner would put the focus on winning, but at what cost? Steinbrenner had a taste of Olympic politics while leading a panel commissioned in the wake of the poor U.S. showing at the 1988 Calgary Games. His recommendation? Focus on medals, and remember that money talks.
>> Peter Ueberroth: A natural choice because of the high regard he's still looked upon for the success of 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. But would the co-owner of Pebble Beach want to drag himself back into the back-stabbing world of Olympic politics?
>> Chuck Wielgus: Executive director of USA Swimming would be another non-corporate candidate that already knows the ins and outs of Olympic business.
Associated Press
Athens 2004 Olympics
