Geer, Cropper assume new roles at USATF

INDIANAPOLIS - Longtime USA Track & Field staff members Jill Geer and Ivan Cropper have taken on new titles and new duties as the National Office continues to undergo reorganization under CEO Doug Logan.

Geer has been named Chief Public Affairs Officer, while Cropper becomes Senior Director of Marketing and Communications. The shift combines USATF's previously distinct communications and marketing departments under Cropper, while establishing Geer as the chief communications strategist for the organization.

Geer joined the USATF staff in 2000 as Director of Communications after a career as a sports writer, columnist and editor. During her tenure, the USATF communications department nearly tripled in size and broadened its reach from a small number of print reporters to thousands of media worldwide, while being at the forefront of employing electronic communications in the lead-up to the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney. She has been profiled in PR Week and is among the most recognizable spokespeople in the Olympic Family.

She will overseeUSTAF corporate communications, direct USATF crisis communications, continue to serve as official spokesperson, and serve as liaison to USATF's partners in the Olympic and international athletics movements. She is now part of the USATF Executive Staff, reporting to CEO Doug Logan, which also includes Chief Operating Officer Mike McNees, Chief of Sport Performance Benita Fitzgerald Mosley, General Counsel Lamont Jones, Managing Director of Business Affairs Jim Elias, and Chief Financial Officer Gina Miller.

"Jill's strategic abilities and her forceful vision for USATF's message were immediately obvious to me when I began working with USATF last summer," Logan said. "Her new position will enable her to focus on advancing USATF in the broader media landscape, domestically and internationally."

Cropper came to USATF as Director of Marketing in 2001, having previously worked for General Motors Eventworks. In his eight years with USATF, he has developed a consistent brand identity for the organization while cultivating corporate partnerships with Nike, Visa, The Hershey Company, AT&T and Gill Athletics. His work has resulted in a brand redesign for the organization, a vibrant merchandise business, the entitlement of USATF's professional track & field series by Visa and the development of a fantasy track & field game. He was named Senior Director of Marketing in March 2008.

Reporting to COO Mike McNees, Cropper now oversees the combined staffs of USATF's marketing and communications departments, including USATF's publications, Web site, community outreach and media operations.

"As we looked at the best way to streamline the National Office, the affinities between marketing and communications were clear," Logan said. "Ivan's creativity, managerial skills and dedication to organizational excellence make him a great fit for this new role. This new department will flourish, and take big strides forward, under his leadership."

About USA Track & Field

USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world's oldest organized sports, some of the most-watched events of Olympic broadcasts, the #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States.

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For more information on USATF, visit www.usatf.org