USAT AAC

Hello all,
Following are notes from the board meeting this past weekend. It
only includes information on topics pertaining to elites. For
official minutes, go to www.usatriathlon.org.

Many thanks to Eric Bean, Kevin Carter and Gina Kehr for doing an
excellent job of representing elite athletes at this meeting!

Thanks,
Alison

----------------

USA Triathlon Board Meeting
March 18-19, 2005
Notes Pertaining to Elites

Athlete Representatives in Attendance:
¡¤ Eric Bean, elite board of directors member
¡¤ Kevin Carter, elite board of directors member
¡¤ Gina Kehr, elite board of directors member
¡¤ Alison DeWall, AAC / elite athlete advocate

1. Resolution to Dissociate from the USOC
¡¤ This was the big topic of the meeting, and it attracted a
big audience, including Tim Carlson of Inside Triathlon. An hour-
long passionate discussion on the topic concluded with Jack Weiss
withdrawing the resolution.
¡¤ A counter resolution was unanimously approved by the
board: ¡°We confirm the ongoing commitment to the relationship
between pros, age groupers and the USOC.¡±
¡¤ For more details, please refer to USAT¡¯s press release at
the conclusion of this report.

2. Lifetime Fitness Report
¡¤ Lifetime¡¯s race director reported on their ongoing support
of USAT. Their 2005 event will be on July 16, and will offer a $500k
prize purse using the equalizer format. They would like to work with
us on partnering on a joint draft-legal race series in 2006.

3. Elite Membership Exception Criteria Resolution - Unanimously
Approved
¡¤ Overview: USA Triathlon¡¯s elite membership rule includes an
exception clause for athletes who have achieved exceptional status
in swimming, track & field or cycling (athlete has been on the USA
Swimming, USA Cycling, or USA Track and Field Olympic Team, Pan
American Team, or USA Elite National Team). The purpose of the rule
is to make it easier for world-class athletes in triathlon-related
sports to race as an elite in triathlon (i.e. Steve Larson). Often,
these athletes may be racing pro full time in their primary sport
and would like to race part time in triathlon. The exception clause
benefits both the athlete, by speeding their rise to elite ranks,
and the sport of triathlon, by enhancing the quality of the elite
ranks. The exception has worked well since its inception. And, due
to the difficulty in meeting it, we have considered less than 5
athletes for such an exception. The purpose of this resolution is to
1) bring the exception clause in line with the new (2005) elite
membership criteria and 2) add ¡°Duathlon National Champion¡± to the
list of those to be considered for exception. ** Full resolution is
at the conclusion of this report.

4. Commissioner of Officials Report
¡¤ ¡°Ever since the pro rules were added to the Competitive
Rules in 1992, we have required race directors who paid a minimum of
$5k in cash prizes to pay all of the money to pros. Race directors
were not allowed to pay cash prizes to age group triathletes at
those events with $5000+.¡±
¡¤ Charlie Crawford reported that there are growing requests
from race directors to offer prize money to age groupers.
¡¤ The board agreed that our policy stands as is, and we will
not make any exceptions.

5. National Team Program Report
¡¤ National team roster (January ¨C June 2005):

Women: Men:
GOLD GOLD
Barb Lindquist Hunter Kemper
Laura Reback Andy Potts
Sheila Taormina Victor Plata
Susan Williams Joe Umphenour
Joanna Zeiger Seth Wealing

SILVER SILVER
None Mark Fretta

BRONZE BRONZE
None Matthew Reed

¡¤ U23 Squad- The U23 Program seeks to educate and advance
young elite athletes who are starting out their careers on the
international circuit. A great deal of effort has been put on
developing this program and a contract was signed with a cycling
Coaching Company (Cadence Cycling) to work with the athletes and
coaches to help advance the level of cycling in our sport at that
level. Brian Walton, head coach of Cadency Cycling.
¡¤ Collegiate and Emerging Athlete Program:
¡Ì A three week Collegiate Camp will be held in Colorado
Springs from June 5-26. Athletes will get the opportunity of honing
their skills alongside the resident and national team members. They
will also attend a four day National Development Camp in Estes Park
from June 12- 15.
¡Ì The Emerging Athlete Program identified athletes post-NCAA
single sport careers and other ¡°late entry¡± athletes. We have
identified three athletes so far. One has already joined the
resident program and one is the early stages of attempting to
qualify for an elite License and the other intends to commence her
career in triathlon once the track season is over in May.
¡¤ Camp Schedule:
¡Ì National Team Camp (Chula Vista): February 4 ¨C April 26
¡Ì Collegiate and Emerging Athlete Camp (Colorado Springs):
June 5 - 26
¡Ì Junior Select Camp (Colorado Springs): August 8 ¨C 20
¡Ì U23 Worlds Prep Camp (Colorado Springs): August 12 ¨C
September 4
¡¤ USAT 2005 Elite Cup Challenge
¡Ì The ITU selected the following races to form part of the
Americas Continental Cup Series:
¡¤ Honolulu World Cup (April 16, 2005)
¡¤ Tempe Continental Cup (May 22, 2005)
¡¤ New York City Continental Cup (June 10, 2005)
¡¤ Bellingham Continental Cup (August 7, 2005)
¡¤ Boston Continental Cup (September 4, 2005)
¡¤ Elite Numbers
¡Ì As of March 1, Elite numbers are as follows:
¡¤ 206 triathlon licenses 79%
¡¤ 21 duathlon licenses 8%
¡¤ 21 foreign licenses 8%
¡¤ 10 off road licenses 4%
¡¤ 2 elite collegiate licenses 1%

6. National Championships Resolution
¡¤ USAT shall own and produce two events. One of these races
shall be in the spring. The other shall be in or near September.
¡¤ The spring event may serve as our Collegiate National
Championship.
¡¤ The spring event may serve as the age-group worlds qualifier.
¡¤ The September event will serve as our age-group national
championship.
¡¤ The elite race may be held at either the spring or September
event. Each year we will determine whether it is feasible to hold
elite nationals with the age group championship.
¡¤ The Owned Events Committee that makes a recommendation to
the Board of Directors on this topic will include a representative
of the AAC and the National Teams Program Coordinator.

7. AAC Report
¡¤ 2005 Elite Representatives
a. ITU AAC: all members must be listed in the most recent ITU
triathlon world rankings. The group will focus on issues pertaining
to ITU racing, including World Cup entries, ITU rules, World
Championships, Continental Cup races:
¡¤ Gina Kehr
¡¤ Andy Kelsey
¡¤ Patrice Wolfensberger
b. Non-ITU AAC: The group will focus on issues pertaining to
all aspects of multi-sport with the exception of ITU. This will
include Ironman, non-drafting triathlon, duathlon, winter triathlon
and Aquathlon
¡¤ Jimmy Archer
¡¤ Greg Mueller
¡¤ Eric Schwartz
c. Elite Board of Directors Representatives: the following
athletes are serving through June 30, 2005:
¡¤ Eric Bean
¡¤ Kevin Carter
¡¤ Gina Kehr
d. USOC AAC:
¡¤ Victor Plata
¡¤ Jennifer Gutierrez = alternate

¡¤ 2005 AAC and Elite Board of Directors¡¯ Goals
a. Address and change the current anti-pro sentiment coming
from age groupers, race directors, publications and USAT¡¯s Board of
Directors
b. Act as a fair, professional advisory group to USAT¡¯s staff
and Board of Directors
c. Represent the views of all elite athletes (not only our own
interests)
d. Increase support (financial or not-financial) for non-ITU
elite athletes
e. Support and further USAT¡¯s goal of winning Olympic medals
f. Support and further USAT¡¯s High Performance Plan initiatives
g. Create a mentoring program where experienced elites educate
and help new elites

¡¤ 2004 Athletes of the Year
a. The AAC recommended the following athletes for athlete of
the year honors:
¡¤ Triathlon ¨C Hunter Kemper, Susan Williams
¡¤ Triathlon Rookie ¨C Greg Krause, Rebeccah Wassner
¡¤ Duathlon ¨C Greg Watson, Desiree Ficker

¡¤ New Elite Membership Rule
a. As expected, there have been many complaints about the new
membership criteria.
b. Athletes are complaining that it favors those who live near
large events.
c. For those who don¡¯t live near large triathlons, it can be an
expensive prospect to become an elite.
d. The AAC will reevaluate the policy at the conclusion of 2005.

¡¤ 2005 Triathlon National Championship Recommendation
a. The AAC recommends Bellingham based on the following:
¡¤ ITU event
¡¤ Drafting
¡¤ Established, well-respected event
¡¤ Best timing of all ITU events in the US (August 7, 2005)

¡¤ Results of 2004 Year-End AAC Survey
a. Each year the AAC sends a survey to all USAT elite athletes
to help us assess our performance and shape our goals for the
following year. We received 50 responses to the 2004 survey, which
is approximately a 17% response rate. The results showed the
following insights:
¡¤ The majority of races done at the elite level are Olympic
distance triathlon.
¡¤ Elite athletes are looking for guidance in their career as a
pro. This includes help finding sponsorship and media exposure to
guidance in how to best promote and give back to specific events and
to the sport in general.
¡¤ A mentoring program for new elites may help many of the
issues important to elites by establishing realistic expectations.
¡¤ Previous years¡¯ problems with communication to/from elites
seem to have been mitigated.
¡¤ Elites are interested in doing what they can to raise the
level of prestige of elite racing in the U.S.

b. Some of the specific results are listed below:
¡¤ Approximately how many events did you participate in 2004
(list total # of each format)?
¡Ì 56% Olympic Distance Triathlon
¡Ì 18% Long Distance Triathlon (1/2 Ironman or Ironman)
¡Ì 13% Duathlon
¡Ì 13% XTERRA
¡Ì 0% Winter Triathlon

¡¤ What 3 issues are the most important for the AAC to work on
in 2005 (check 3 items)?
¡Ì 20% Raise the level of prestige of elite racing in the US
¡Ì 19% Increase media exposure for elites
¡Ì 13% Help me find sponsorship opportunities
¡Ì 12% Develop programs to support non-ITU athletes
¡Ì 10% Improve National Championship system for non-ITU
events

¡¤ What are the two best ways to increase the level prestige of
and respect shown to USAT elites (check 2)?
¡Ì 38% Hold elite nationals at the same event as amateur
nationals
¡Ì 27% Tell me what I can do to help race directors and
USAT
when I¡¯m at an event
¡Ì 25% Educate elites on what is expected of them
¡Ì 10% Penalize athletes who make elites as a whole look bad

¡¤ Rate the usefulness of the emailed Elite Beat newsletter
(10: extremely useful- couldn¡¯t be better; 1: terrible- I don¡¯t even
bother reading it): 7.29

¡¤ Rate the usefulness of the online E-lite Beat Yahoo chat
group (10: extremely useful- couldn¡¯t be better; 1: terrible- it¡¯s a
waste of time): 6.89

¡¤ Selected open ended comments:
¡Ì Elites need to work together to further our goals as a whole
a. ¡°Keep us informed of the changes and what we can all do
together to accomplish any goals¡±
¡Ì ¡°Start cracking down on drug use¡­ not some soft policy¡­¡±
¡Ì Elites feel overlooked and disrespected
a. ¡°The elite athletes are so overlooked. In my frank opinion,
it will be very difficult to turn USAT around to be a positive force
once again for the sport. I wish them the best of luck, and hope
that they come up with intelligent, wise, and satisfactory solutions
to once again help instead of hinder our elite athletes.¡±
b. ¡°Ensure the USA Triathlon organization improves their
professionalism and not tarnish its image and the sport in the way
that has been done over the last year (elections, pettiness of
directors, read the news and you will find out).¡±
c. ¡°Encourage more solidarity from members¡±
¡Ì ¡°Continue your efforts in promoting and establishing a
network for professionals.¡±
¡Ì Keep me posted on racing and sponsorship opportunities,
especially for non-ITU athletes.¡±

-------------

Elite Membership Exception Resolution

Financial Impact:
None

Relevant & Affected By-Laws and Procedures:
Article 2; Rule 2.4 of USA Triathlon Rules

Current Membership Criteria (passed at the November 2004 Board
Meeting):
Any athlete who chooses to compete as an elite triathlete must meet
one of the three (3) criteria listed below:
CRITERIA A: Finish top- 8 and within 8% of the overall winner¡¯s
time, according to gender, in three (3) USAT sanctioned events that
occurred within the past 12 months and had at least 500 participants.
CRITERIA B: Finish within 8% of the overall winner¡¯s time in two (2)
Ironman- distance events that included an elite field (offering $5k
or greater in prize purse) that occurred within the past 12 months
and had at least 500 participants.
CRITERIA C: Finish within 8% of the overall winner¡¯s time in one (1)
Ironman- distance event that included an elite field (offering $5k
or greater in prize purse) that occurred within the past 12 months
and had at least 500 participants AND Finish top- 8 and within 8% of
the overall winner¡¯s time, according to gender, in one (1) USAT
sanctioned event that occurred within the past 12 months and had at
least 500 participants.
Current Exception Criteria (unchanged in 2004):
Special consideration for exceptions to any of the above
qualification criteria will be granted by USA Triathlon Athlete¡¯s
Advisory Council based on the following criteria:
a. Athlete has been on the USA Swimming, USA Cycling, or USA
Track and Field Olympic Team, Pan American Team, or USA Elite
National Team and
b. The athlete must have finished top 10 overall and within 10
percent of the overall winner¡¯s time in one sanctioned USAT
triathlon that occurred within the past 12 months and had over 200
participants.
ONLY WHEN AN ATHLETE MEETS THE ABOVE CRITERIA WILL A ¡°SPECIAL¡±
CONSIDERATION BE MADE.

Whereas, USAT changed its elite membership criteria in 2005 to
require athletes to meet stricter standards than the ¡°top 10 overall
and within 10 percent of the overall winner¡¯s time¡±. However, at
that time we did not update section b) of the exception criteria
(above) to match with the new stricter criteria.

Whereas, the exception clause allows athletes to be considered for
an exception - it doesn¡¯t automatically grant an exception (the AAC
subjectively decides whether those who meet the exception clause are
actually awarded an exception).

Whereas, USAT¡¯s elite duathlon national champions have reached the
highest level of achievement in duathlon in the United States and
are necessarily proficient in the multi-sport format.

Whereas, in order to be the elite duathlon national champion, an
athlete must be an exceptional cyclist. Therefore, the cycling
safety risks associated with allowing an exception are minimal.

Whereas, including elite duathlon national champions in the list of
athletes who can be considered for an exception will allow affected
duathletes to continue focusing on duathlon, while at the same time
race in triathlons.

Now therefore be it resolved that, USAT¡¯s elite road
triathlon ¡°Special Consideration for Exception to Qualification
Criteria¡± is changed to the following:

Special Considerations for Elite License Qualification Criteria:
Special consideration for exceptions to any of the above
qualification criteria will be considered by USA Triathlon Athlete¡¯s
Advisory Council based on the following criteria:
¡¤ Athlete has been on the USA Swimming, USA Cycling, or USA
Track and Field Olympic Team, Pan American Team, or USA Elite
National Team OR
¡¤ Athlete was the top finisher in their respective gender at
USAT¡¯s Elite National Short Course Duathlon Championships that
occurred within the past 5 years.
AND
¡¤ Athlete meets either criteria A or B below:
CRITERIA A: Finish top- 8 and within 8% of the overall winner¡¯s
time, according to gender, in one (1) USAT sanctioned event that
occurred within the past 12 months and had at least 500 participants.
CRITERIA B: Finish within 8% of the overall winner¡¯s time in one (1)
Ironman- distance event that included an elite field (offering $5k
or greater in prize purse) that occurred within the past 12 months
and had at least 500 participants.
ONLY WHEN AN ATHLETE MEETS THE ABOVE CRITERIA WILL A ¡°SPECIAL¡±
CONSIDERATION BE MADE.

This criterion is retroactive to past duathlon national champions.
It is effective as of April 1, 2005.

Submitted by:
Alison DeWall, Elite Athlete Advocate on behalf of the AAC
Gina Kehr, Board of Directors Member

----------------

USA Triathlon Board Re-Affirms
Relationship with USOC
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (March 19, 2005) ¨C COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.
(March 19, 2005) ¨C Following a passionate and spirited debate at the
USA Triathlon Board of Directors meeting Saturday, a resolution
calling for USA Triathlon to end its relationship with the U.S.
Olympic Committee was withdrawn by its author and the Board voted to
re-affirm its association with the USOC.
USAT Board members, staff, and USAT members, meeting in Colorado
Springs, all weighed in on the resolution, written by Board member
Jack Weiss. Jim Scherr, Chief Executive of the U.S. Olympic
Committee, had also addressed the resolution with the Board on
Friday.
¡°Jack¡¯s resolution created an opportunity for the USA Triathlon
Board to re-examine what our federation stands for and where it is
going. We are dedicated to preserving and enhancing all our
important relationships, from members, race directors and sponsors
to the USOC and International Triathlon Union,¡± said Board President
Brad Davison.
¡°Whether or not we agree with his resolution, the Board appreciates
Jack¡¯s love for the sport and his dedication to USAT both as a
volunteer Board member and as a sanctioning race director.¡±
The resolution that was passed unanimously by the 11-member Board on
Saturday reads, ¡°we resolve to confirm the ongoing relationship
between the age group and pro/elite components of USA Triathlon and
our continuing association with the U.S. Olympic Committee.¡±
¡°The unanimous support of the Olympic movement by our staff has only
been strengthened and better defined by this process,¡± said Skip
Gilbert, USA Triathlon¡¯s incoming executive director. ¡°I fully
applaud Jack¡¯s resolution to call to question the dynamics of our
relationship with the USOC, and I¡¯m very encouraged by our Board¡¯s
constructive and passionate dialogue to get to the final result.¡±

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posted by andy  # 4:50 PM