USATF board's statement on IAAF council nomination

They didn't release this statement directly afterwards because a lot of it wouldn't have been known by the board. Stephanie had this written and provided to the board to release to help secure her spot and simmer down all the hostility she has brought the board. The fact that not a single person put their name on it the bottom is an embarrassment to the board.

A few issues I have with their "key" elements:

1. You are telling me Hersh doesn't have good relationships with Bubka or Coe?

2. That because Hersh is man he has less of a relationship with the Caribean, African, and Middle Eastern nations? (Yeah I'm going to say Hersh has a better relationship with the Middle East nations)

3. Please provide an example where she has shown better advocacy than Hersh while representing USATF and its athletes at the international level?

4. I don't believe for a second that the board knew all of the historical facts regarding how Hersh is where he is today.

This whole letter is just a bunch of BS and it's sad.

Their biggest reason was that the current President is stepping down and there are scandals, which they admit in their letter Hersh has nothing to do with. So what you are saying is he has done a great job, stayed out of controversy, and with being one of the returning seniors on staff would have had the ability to move up in the IAAF council? Yes, that is the best time to get rid of the IAAF Vice President....

My favorite section was they based their decision on FACTS! They assumed we would be considered backwards-looking if we reelected Hersh. They assumed she has a better relationship with regions that don't even matter. Hersh has a better working relationship with the Americas, Europe, and Asia. All of which have way more political power than any of the connections Hightower has.

Hightower needs to be removed ASAP.. Just my 2 cents

You all must be new to this. That memo is your basic F.O.A.D. This is the core of IOC sport administration.

"Forward looking" means the Board are looking forward to bank deposits, promotions, new titles, whatever Hightower promised them in exchange for votes. All within the rules, of course.

I'm not sure why so many of you don't get it.

Bob Hersh is on the Board of Directors. Did he approve this letter? Is the Board allowed to write this type of letter without unanimity?

I'm waiting for the announcement that Ian will take over USATF when the bride becomes the Toast of 17 rue Princesse Florestine.

USATF once again has put themselves in a lose/lose situation. Each time they either f-up or at least seemingly f-up, they either have no response or their response comes weeks/months after the fact. For me, that letter could have said that it was discovered that Hersh was discovered to be an alien & the board had no other choice. FINE, but tell us ahead of the vote or at the very least immediately after - not friggin mid February!

The two most notable things I took from this are:

-It's possible that Hightower doesn't even get elected to the IAAF council. Can momentum be started to make that a reality?

-She's up for re-election in 2016. What does it take to get a new president? If she can't even get on the council that would be much easier...

Correction. She cannot be re-elected again (per the RW article).

Who is waiting in the wings?

Everyone is missing the real reason for Hightower's move on this.

USATF bylaws were changed to make the Board Chair elected from the Board, and not automatically given to the elected president. The IAAF rep automatically gets a seat on the Board.

This whole thing is for 2 reasons -- 1) Hightower wants to continue in her position as Chair of the Board, 2) she wants the trips to Monaco that Hersh loves so much.

Trollymon wrote:

The two most notable things I took from this are:

-It's possible that Hightower doesn't even get elected to the IAAF council.

She has essentially zero chance of being elected to council by the IAAF membership. There are lots of reasons; for one, no woman has ever been elected in the entire 103-year history of the organization (there are council seats set aside for women, else it would be a total sausage fest), and another is that Hersh's allies (and he has many) know who is responsible for giving him a raw deal. The thought that she should be nominated because will have influence within the IAAF is roughly equal to voting for Mike Huckabee or Al Sharpton in a primary because you think they'll win the general election: no way in hell.

If she doesn't get elected onto the Council, than do we have no one from USA on it? I'm sure there are current officials that know of Letsrun and know of what is happening. This must look like a disaster and embarrassment to the organization Hightower would pull this stunt. I hope she doesn't get elected and her greed comes back to slap her in the face.

I'm surprised no one mentioned this little gem in the letter"

"The fact that the IAAF has a demonstrable need for more women and women of color makes her a very strong candidate."

Affirmative action in action.

Bad Deal wrote:

If she doesn't get elected onto the Council, than do we have no one from USA on it?

Correct. Although many believe that we are better off with no representative than Hightower.

I'm sure there are current officials that know of Letsrun and know of what is happening. This must look like a disaster and embarrassment to the organization Hightower would pull this stunt. I hope she doesn't get elected and her greed comes back to slap her in the face.

Hersch is an admitted Letsrun lurker. He is a real track nut to be honest. And, I am sure there are IAAF council members who read the board.

That said, I don't think they need this forum to know about the resistance to SH. Whether that resistance is marshaled in such a way as to prevent her nomination from succeeding is still very much up in the air.

Has anybody thought about getting the USATF members to send a letter to the IAAF Council pleading with them not to elect her? Stating we did not not SH as our representative and we would rather have no one on the board than have her on it. That would go along way I'm sure but it would need to come from the persons that voted at the meeting (which I could not afford to be there, but would have voted for Hersh if I was)

Bad Deal wrote:

Has anybody thought about getting the USATF members to send a letter to the IAAF Council pleading with them not to elect her? Stating we did not not SH as our representative and we would rather have no one on the board than have her on it. That would go along way I'm sure but it would need to come from the persons that voted at the meeting (which I could not afford to be there, but would have voted for Hersh if I was)

MONEY is the election criteria. Hightower has Nike money to spread around.

If you want Hersh, Hersh needs a bigger deal than Nike with better payouts to voting members. All within the rules of course.

What is FOAD?

I don't buy the part that Nike likes Hightower. Hightower is part of the regime that has made USATF look bad many times. They didn't resolve the indoor controversy, they appointed Dennis Mitchell for world relays, and more.

Bump. Sick of the lack of accountability and the steady stream of b*llsh*t from USATF.

This is what they've been doing. Ignore the situation while its happening and wait until everybody forgets and then randomly release some cookie cutter paper that doesn't resolve anything.

rampant wrote:

What is FOAD?

I don't buy the part that Nike likes Hightower. Hightower is part of the regime that has made USATF look bad many times. They didn't resolve the indoor controversy, they appointed Dennis Mitchell for world relays, and more.

F.o.a.d is an acronym for

F. The 'f word'

O. Off

A. And

D. Die

No one at USATF cares how bad they look. They run a monopoly members have no say in. If you think the Russian scandal was isolated, then you'd be wrong.