U.S. hopes to win the 2016 Olympics – as well as medals at the Vancouver Winter Games - will be on full display in Chicago this week for the major annual meeting of the U.S. Olympic Committee.
Chicago Mayor Richard Daley will make an appearance at the opening reception for the U.S. Olympic Assembly Tuesday night, where the main topic will no doubt be Chicago 2016's chances to win the IOC vote on Oct. 2.
Chicago 2016 Chairman Pat Ryan and USOC Acting Chief Executive Officer Stephanie Streeter will open the Olympic Assembly with the keynote address on Wednesday.
The fifth annual assembly, which concludes Thursday, brings together the USOC and organizations associated with the U.S. Olympic Movement to foster communication, collaboration and the development of new initiatives supporting U.S. athletes.
Olympic Assembly Highlights
The annual Olympic Assembly is expected to draw hundreds of individuals connected with the Olympic Movement in the U.S.
On Wednesday, the panel discussion, "The Chicago 2016 Campaign - Long Term Impact & Legacy" will feature Robert Fasulo, USOC Chief of International Relations; Senior Advisor of International Relations for Chicago 2016 Mike Kontos; Executive Director of World Sport Chicago Scott Myers; and Chairman of World Sport Chicago Bill Scherr.
"Olympic Family: Seeing and Shaping the Future" will be led by futurist and trend forecaster Gerald Celente and will encourage guests to discuss their role in shaping the future of the Olympic Movement.
Wednesday's lunch will include a Vancouver sport update from 2010 U.S. Olympic Chef de Mission Mike Plant. Five-time Olympic speedskating gold medalist Bonnie Blair will join Plant in a Q & A with Vancouver hopefuls Ralph Green, Paralympic alpine skiing; Catherine Raney-Norman, speedskating; Angela Ruggiero, women's ice hockey; and skier Marco Sullivan.
The winner of the Jack Kelly Fair Play Award also will be announced.
Meetings of the NGB Council, MultiSport organizations council and Athletes' Advisory Council will also be held.
On Thursday, the USOC Board of Directors meets following meetings of the compensation and audit committees.
Media Summit Preview
About 75 Olympic and Paralympic athletes will discuss their Vancouver aspirations during the U.S. Olympic Team Media Summit Thursday through Saturday.
The summit is aimed at members of the U.S. media who will be covering the Vancouver Olympics.
The confirmed Olympic hopefuls include bobsled drivers Steve Holcomb and Shauna Rohbock, figure skaters Evan Lysacek and Johnny Weir, ice dancers Ben Agosto and Tanith Belbin, hockey player Angela Ruggiero and speedskater Chad Hedrick.
Superstars such as skier Lindsey Vonn, short track speedskater Apolo Anton Ohno and figure skater Sasha Cohen will speak via teleconference.
Chicago also hosted the media summit prior to the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing. Print, broadcast, internet and photo journalists will conduct interviews in press conferences and round tables and athletes are also available for photo sessions
USOC leadership will kick off the media summit with a press conference and Vancouver 2010 will hold a press conference on the final morning.
The Around the Rings Newsmaker Tea -- Destination Britain at 4 p.m. Wednesday will be followed by the opening reception for the Media Summit.
SportsLink in Second Year
Olympic SportsLink will focus on finding host cities for some of the 40-plus U.S. Olympic Team Trials and Exhibition events expected in the run-up to the 2012 Olympic Games in London.
The event, hosted by three-time Olympic swimming gold medalist Rowdy Gaines, will emphasize networking opportunities for National Governing Bodies and cities.
Sessions featuring speakers with extensive experience in sport event management, marketing and operations will include: Brett Goodman: Senior Vice President of Strategic Partnerships & Business Affairs at NBC Universal Sports & Olympics and the designated spokesperson for "Make Them Care" - NBC's strategic approach to Olympic marketing and promotion; Lars Pedersen: International Federation strategic counselor and Managing Director for TSE Consulting; Greg Shaheen, NCAA Senior Vice President of Basketball and Business Strategies, Supervisor of Strategic Operation for the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship and President of the National Invitational Tournament (NIT); and Frank Supovitz: Senior Vice President of Events for the NFL and an expert in sport event management and marketing.
Work sessions will center around best practices in the sports event industry, including in-depth discussions on the sports event bid process, Olympic Team Trials, NGB events, marketing, sponsorship activation, event operations and crisis management.
More than 65 cities and 30 NGBs were represented at the inaugural Olympic SportsLink in Indianapolis last year.
Written by Karen Rosen.
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