Team Integrity's Press Release regarding the proposed Empowering Olympic and Amateur Athletes Act of 2019

July 31, 2019 Please contact:

Ed Vasquez

408-420-6558 or ed@ejvcommunications.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Washington, D.C.) The Committee to Restore Integrity to the USOPC’s aim is to prevent the possibility of another Scott Blackmun, a corrupt leader, and a Larry Nassar, someone who took advantage of the Olympic system to abuse athletes. There are many positive aspects of the Empowering Olympic and Amateur Athletes Act of 2019, and Team Integrity is proud of our many proposals that are part of the legislation. The Act recognizes the USOPC’s dishonorable leadership, and we are heartened that the U.S. Center for SafeSport will be more fully funded. But the new legislation proposed by Senators Moran and Blumenthal does not represent the necessary reforms necessary for elite athletes, and does not prevent another Scott Blackmun or a Larry Nassar. What made Nassar so successful was Blackmun-enforced athlete-powerlessness, rather than a lack of staff and resouces to "protect" our athletes. This legislation doesn’t yet address two central problems that were thoroughly flushed out by the House Subcommittee Report, the USOPC-funded Ropes & Gray Report, or the USOPC-chartered Borders Commission: fear of retaliation and a lack of power balance between the elite athletes and the Corporation.

Team Integrity does not oppose the Empowering Olympic and Amateur Athletes Act of 2019; it will benefit the 16 million athletes in the Olympic Movement. But we believe it must be strengthened for elite athletes. We look forward to working with both offices to address these issues, and we are hopeful that the Senator Moran and Senator Blumenthal legislation can be combined with the legislation proposed by Senator Gardner and Congresswoman DeGette to more comprehensively remedy the problems at the Olympic and Paralympic movement.

The USOPC has been wracked by repetitive scandals; the public knows of only the most egregious ones, those that were able to break through the presumption of silence. For years, athlete whistleblowers attempted to reform the system from within, and were ruthlessly punished for speaking the truth; that the governance of the Olympic movement was flawed, that sexually abused Olympians and Paralympians were intentionally ignored as a matter of official USOPC Board Policy. In ongoing efforts to change these Board positions, (it is still appalling that anyone would fight hard against protecting athletes from abuse) Olympians and Paralympians turned to the U.S. Congress to step in to fundamentally change the system in order to protect athletes and create an Olympic Committee governance that would make America proud.

We are grateful that the proposed legislation recognizes just how corrupt that the USOPC and USAG were. But those same people are still in power, or were chosen by those who were in power at the height of the willful failure of money over morals. Olympians and Paralympians came up with sophisticated solutions to assist lawmakers in ensuring these problems never happen again. For example, they asked for an Inspector General to fairly adjudicate concerns in the Olympic system. They asked for an Athlete Advocate to serve as an independent professional advocate for athlete issues, on par with the CEO. They asked for attorney’s fees when an athlete challenges all types of abuse and wins in Sports Act-mandated arbitrations. They asked that the Athlete’s Advisory Committee, the AAC, be fully funded, with firewalls to prevent the corporation from luring athletes from tough athlete-centric positions with money and adulation. And they asked for fundamental governance changes that would improve transparency and give athletes a true seat at the table. Sarah Hirshland, current CEO of the USOPC for almost a year, has twice publicly stated that she does not have a solution for the problem of retaliation. Furthermore, disabled athletes who compete in the Paralympics were completely left out of this legislation, except for a name-change.

Lastly, we fear if this legislation passes as written, it will embolden the corporation against everyone who has spoken out against the current system. Groups like ours, Team Integrity, and so many athlete whistleblowers who have bravely stood up for reform through the years will certainly be at risk.

Without removing either the people or the power structures, this legislation would not have prevented the problems of the past, and as detailed below, does not solve current athlete-powerlessness problems. Therefore, the proposed Act should not be accepted as complete reform for the future. The Committee to Restore Integrity to the USOPC thanks Senator Moran and Senator Blumenthal for this strong bill to stand on moving forward, and we look forward to continue collaborating. We, the Olympians and Paralympians who gave up decades of our lives for the Movement, cannot afford to allow another 20 years of athlete abuse before enacting comprehensive reforms.

Athlete Disempowerment During CEO Sarah Hirshland Tenure:

• Problematic candidates Rich Bender and Steve Mesler were appointed to four-year terms on to the USOPC Board over AAC objections and without input from the AAC.

• The USOPC formed a committee to gift some of the most lucrative marks, the Olympic rings, to colleges and universities, without athlete input. According to the current Sports Act, Athletes are supposed to constitute 20% of all committees and board positions.

o Athletes are still not permitted to use the marks for their own fundraising.

o It is unclear after this proposed legislation how this would be resolved.

• The USOPC has taken the position that it does not need to provide athletes with the due process protections guaranteed by the Sports Act and USOC by-laws. Athletes at Olympic Training Centers face complaints, labeled as somehow related to "SafeSport". The complaints are along the lines of an anonymous "I don’t feel safe around this athlete." These "SafeSport complaints" are not fact specific, and do not allege that the athlete has put someone else in danger. Instead, the athlete may have said an NGB employee was incompetent. The NGB then conveys this "SafeSport Compliant" to the USOPC, and it summarily bans the athlete from using the OTC and from receiving funding. (See Team Integrity "USOC New Due Process Challenges")

• Athlete health insurance is discontinued when athletes need it most: when they become sick, injured or become pregnant, and their rankings drop.

o Otherwise, the USOPC is insuring some of the youngest, healthiest people in the insurance pool; it could scarcely be cheaper.

• The USOPC required USA Women’s National Team in Soccer to sue their NGB when they face sex discrimination. Instead of the USOPC protecting the athlete, the USOPC funds the NGBs, including their legal costs against athletes. See also, women’s hockey, cycling and rugby.

• Budget: Money allocation reflects values. As Will Hobson reported years ago, the 5-rings have made executives rich, while keeping athletes poor. Nothing has changed. https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/olympics/olympic-executives-cash-in-on-a-movement-that-keeps-athletes-poor/2016/07/30/ed18c206-5346-11e6-88eb-7dda4e2f2aec_story.html?utm_term=.e924e3851d57

o Blackmun spoke at an AAC meeting after the 2016 Olympics and the athletes were challenging the staff bonuses that were bigger for the executives than for athletes winning the gold medal. He said, quote, "who do you think wins the medals?" Really.

o Lisa Baird, head of marketing, recently left with a $300K severance, and $400K bonus.

o Patrick Sandusky, head of communications, left with a $500K severance.

o Blackmun’s pay in 2018 – for working 2 months was $3M.

o Suzanne Lyons was paid $100,000/ month as interim CEO of the USOC. Yet Lyon’s expected compensation as a Senior VP at Visa would be between $174K - $285K per year.

o While the USOPC board said Scott Blackmun was resigning for health reasons at the time, now they’re saying it was because the USOPC needed "new leadership."

 We cannot find a single quote from February/ March/ April 2018 that was anything other than praising his leadership, and citing his health as the reason for leaving.

o The USOC will pay a national coach $250K and the athletes 0, but on the 990 or the budget it will say that the USOC spent $250K for "athlete support". Thereby, the USOC can CLAIM must of the $317M budget is going to "support" athletes – but it is actually more money going into coaches/ executives pockets.

o It is unclear after this proposed legislation how this would be resolved.

• Team Integrity had direct conversations and written communications with Sarah Hirshland about conflicts of interest when the USOPC hires AAC members in January 2019. Yet Hirshland then went on to hire an AAC member, who just happened to sit on the Hirshland-CEO hiring committee just months prior. (See Attached "Team Integrity Athlete First Recommendations")

o It is unclear after this proposed legislation how this would be resolved.

• USA Track and Field failed to adhere to its own selection procedures for the Pan American Games, resulting in 39 athletes who were completely innocent who were left off the national team. One athlete spent $21,000, who did nothing wrong.

o Worse, at a Section 9 AAA arbitration, USATF did not adhere to the requirement that all AAA arbitrations must include all affected parties. Athletes and their families spent thousands of dollars to resolve this incompetence… again. The USOPC has not stepped in to help athletes.

• USA Table Tennis adopted selection procedures that included the results of competitions that had already occurred. (impermissible retro-active qualifications) Additionally, the selection procedures gave undue discretion to the coach, rather than objective criteria, making athletes more vulnerable to abuse. The USOPC has not stepped in to help athletes, and it is unclear how the Empowering Olympic and Amateur Athletes Act of 2019 would remedy this ongoing problem.

Members of Team Integrity include:

Executive Committee:

Ed Williams, J.D., Oly

Nancy Hogshead-Makar, J.D., Oly

Robert Allard, J.D.

Robert Andrews, MA, LMFT

Jessica Armstrong, J.D.

Eli Bremer, Oly

Chuck Foster, Former USOC Officer

Herman R. Frazier, Oly, Former USOC Officer

Kathy Johnson Clarke, Oly

Lucila Hemmingsen, J.D.

Micki King, Oly

Jon Little, J.D.

Donna Lopiano, Ph.D.

Charles Milam, former USOC Board Member

Dia Rianda

Eva Rodansky

Pat Rodowsky

Steven Sexton, Ph.D.

Jennifer Spiegel, J.D.

Olympians, Paralympians, Coaches and Elite Athletes:

Mary Harvey, Oly

Greg Louganis, Oly

Scott Johnson, Oly

Julianne McNamara, Oly

Ariana Kukors Smith, Oly

Martina Navratilova, Oly

Horace Holden, Oly

Pam Shriver, Oly

Tai Babilonia, Oly

Tracee Talavera, Oly

Bill Stapleton, Oly

Nancy Lieberman, Oly

Dave Berkoff, Oly

Caroline Lind, Oly

Cynthia Potter, Oly

Taraje Williams-Murray, Oly

Don Barcome, Jr., Oly

Larry Hough, Oly, former AAC and USOC Officer

Mitzi Kramer Tighe, Oly

Marci Frederick, Oly

Scott Donie, Oly

Cristina Teuscher Fabbri, Oly

Ian Whatley, Oly

Keith Sanderson, Oly

Seth Kelsey, Oly

Bonny Warner Simi, Oly

Sebastian DeFrancesco, Oly

Joe Jacobi, Oly

Sean O’Neill, Oly

Eric Barnes, Oly

Barb Weinstein McGrath, Oly

Debby McCormick, Oly

Nick Peterson, Oly

Jennifer Hooker Brinegaar, Oly

Allen James, Oly

Brenda Borgh Bartlett, Oly

Janis Hape Dowd, Oly

Deb Armstrong, Oly

Anthony Zahn, Oly

Andrew Hermann, Oly

Carrie Sheinberg, Oly

Sue Heon-Preston, Oly

Allison Wagner, Oly

Linda Jezek Wittwer, Oly

Inga Thompson, Oly

Tiffany Cohen, Oly

Joan Hansen, Oly

Tracy Evans-Land, Oly

Cathy (Catherine) Hearn, Oly

Betsy Mitchell, Oly

Doug Lewis, Oly

Carrie Steinseifer Bates, Oly

Steve Gregg, Oly

Jack Elder, Oly

Deena Deardurff Schmidt, Oly

Arlene Limas, Oly

Stacey Liapis-Fuchsgruber, Oly

Troy Dumias, Oly

Justin Dumias, Oly

Christopher R. (Tiff) Wood, Oly

Tim Caldwell, Oly

John Morton, Oly

Loren Drum, Oly

Laurel (Brassey) Iverson, Oly, former AAC member

Jay Bowerman, Oly

Richard Mize, Oly

Glen Eberle, Oly

Dennis Donahue, Oly

Megan Neyer, Ph.D., Oly

Erik Henriksen, Oly

Dennis Donahue, Oly

Judy Blumberg, Oly

Tom Lough, Ph.D., Oly

Caroline Pingatore Holmes, Oly

David C. Johnson, M.D., Oly

Dana Schoenfield Reyes, Oly

Pat Winslow Connolly, Oly

Arlene Limas, Oly

Jeff Olson, Oly

Khadevis Robinson, Oly

Jim Galanes, Oly

Keith Frostad, Oly

Victoria King, M.D., Oly

Lynette Love, Oly

Kay Poe Sheffield, Oly

Julia Chase-Brand, Oly

Kendis Moore Drake, Oly

Pete Karns, Oly

Caroline Lalive, Oly

Jeffrey Swider-Peltz, Oly

Cathy Jean Marino, Oly

Alison Owen Bradley, Oly

Horace Holden, Oly

Sue Baker, Oly

Craig Ward, Oly

Bill Koch, Oly

Debbie Meyer, Oly

Jeff Farrell, Oly

Jim Henry, Oly

Joe Lamb, Oly

Levi Kirkpatrick, Oly

George Mount, Oly

Steve Cohen, Oly

Jan Margo Henne, Oly

Kevin Brochman, Oly

Randy Barnes, Oly

Justin Spring, Oly

Cale Simmons, Oly

Chelle Stack Marcella, Oly

Kellie Wells Brinkley, Oly

Lauren Gibbs, Oly

Nathan Schrimsher, Oly

Keith Brantly, Oly

Carol Newnan Cronin, Oly

Russell Hodge, Oly

Jimmy Pino, Oly

Ralph Wakley, Oly

Craig Lincoln, Oly

Michael Roth, Oly

Matthew Laue, Oly

Tasha Schwikert, Oly

Russell Hodge, Oly

Larissa Boyce, Oly

Rick Early, Oly

Barb McGrath, Oly

Christine Witty, Oly

Phoebe Mills, Oly

Lauren McFall Gardner, Oly

B.J. Bedford Miller, Oly

Greg Ruckman, Oly

Samantha Livingstone, Oly

John Caldwell, Oly and Oly Coach

Janet Ely, Oly and Coach

Bob Balk, Paralympian

Jon Lujan, Paralympian

Tahl Leibovitz, Paralympian

Ted Fey, Ph.D., Paralympian and IPC Member

Marty Hall, Oly Coach

Don Gambril, Oly Coach

Frank Thomas, Oly Coach

Jan Olesinski, Oly and Coach

Tracy Sundlun, Oly Team Manager

Monica Rowland, Elite Athlete and AAC Member

Art Stegen, Nat’l Team Coach

Doe Yamashiro, DO, Nat’l Team

Dagny Knutson, Nat’l Team Vanessa Atler, Nat’l Team

Peggy Haslach, Nat’l Team

Estee Pryor, Nat’l Team

Chris Riegel, Nat’l Team

Christine Loock, M.D., Nat’l Team

Patty Spees Maysent, Nat’l Team

John Walker, Nat’l Team Coach

Rebecca Carlson, Elite Coach

Pam Boteler, Elite Athlete

Lara Carlson, Elite Athlete

Dawn Riley, Elite Athlete

Carmen Small, Elite Athlete

Susie Kincade, Elite Athlete

Perry Toles, J.D., Elite Athlete

Nate Di Palma, Elite Athlete

Rachael Presler, J.D., Elite Athlete

Julie Whitman DeLucia

Chris DeSantis, Coach

Athletes Abused in Olympic Movement:

Rachael Denhollander, J.D.

Morgan McCall

Sarah Klein, J.D.

Danielle Moore, Psy.D.

Amanda Thomashow

Chrissy Weathersby Ball

Larissa Boyce

Sara Teristi

Diana Nyad

Courtney Kiehl

Bridie Farrell

Jancy Thompson

Debra Denithorne Grodensky

Dani Bostick

Mandy Maloon

Melissa Merson

Olivia Venuto

Danielle Moore, Psy.D.

Louise Harder

Grace French

Sarah Power Barnard

Kay Rogness

Julie Bremner Romias

Sarah Ehekircher

Michele Kurtzman Greenfield

Lisa Burt, in memory of Sarah Burt

Child Protection Organizations:

The Army of Survivors

Champion Women

CHILD USA

Equality League

Set The Expectation

Safety Advisors for Educational Campuses, LLC

Abuse Free Sport, North America

The Honorable Rosemarie Aquilina, presided over the Nassar sentencing

Child Protection Leaders:

Marci Hamilton, J.D.

Brenda Tracy

Michelle Simpson Tuegel, J.D.

Maddie Salamone, J.D.

S. Daniel Carter

Sport Leaders:

Andrew Zimbalist, Ph.D., Sport Economist, Professor

Daniel Marburger, Ph.D., Sport Economist, Professor

Mark Conrad, J.D. Professor

Jacqueline A. Brummer, J.D.

Myron Finkelstein, Graduate Professor, Global Sports Business

Dan Rascher, Ph.D., CVA, Sport Management Professor

Don Porter, former International Softball Federation

Becky Clark, Ph.D., CMPC,

LCSW-R

Jeff Dimond, Executive in Olympic Movement

Becca Gillespy Peter

Rene Henry

Hia Sebastian

Steve Delsohn

Joan Stiedinger, Ph.D., CMPC

Mike Jacki, former ED of USA Gymnastics

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