There seems to be a continued conversation around the National Staff, the Games Committee, the Jury of Appeals and the Officials. Who has responsibility for what, how do they get to be in that position etc - ultimately leading towards the question of "who has the power to affect change?"
Let's start from the field of play level and work upwards, shall we?
USATF RULE 125
REFEREE
1. One or more Referees, as appropriate, shall be appointed for track events, for field events, for Combined Events, and for running and Race Walking events outside the stadium
Comments: Although it doesn't state who appoints the Referee here in the rule book, the USATF ByLaws (Regulation 18 Championships) stipulates this position is one position that the T&F Committee appoints. As we know, any appointment is tied to qualifications, relationships and politics.
I don't believe it has been reported who the referee was and whether or not there were two - was a men's & women's referee.
Up the protest/appeal chain of command is the Jury of Appeals.
USATF RULE 119
JURY OF APPEAL
1. A Jury of Appeal composed of 3 or 5 persons, preferably certified officials, may be established by the Games Committees to consider appeals from decisions of or referrals from the Referee as to matters that develop during the conduct of the event.
Another appointment where qualifications, relationships & politics are taken into consideration. Again, I don't believe we know who was on the Jury in ABQ.
The Jury of Appeals is selected by the Games Committee. What does the rule book say about them?
USATF RULE 111
GAMES COMMITTEE
1. In Championship meets, the Games Committee shall be appointed by the sport committee or committees of USATF.
3. This Committee shall be responsible for the correct conduct of the meet. It shall ...have jurisdiction of all matters not assigned by these rules to the Referee or other officials.
More appointments. But as the BroJos pointed out in their most recent article, this is who has the responsibility for the conduct of the meet.
This mentions that the Games Committee is appointed by the sports committee. Who is that? The Men's or Women's T&F Committee would be the "sport committee" referenced in Rule 111.
The Chair of this committee is an elected position selected every 4 years at the Annual Meeting. They are currently Ed Gorman & Sue Humphrey.
Who gets to elect them? That may better be answered by someone that is more familiar with the Annual Meeting than I, but it is my understanding that USATF members or those representing the Association to which they belong get to vote.
The officers that serve on this committee are then appointed by the chairs. Their National Staff liason would appear to be Peter "Duffy" Mahoney as these committees fall under the High Performance Program and Duffy is the Director.
Among other responsibilities listed in the USATF By Laws, these committees are responsible for:
Regulation 12 D. 1. a. - Championships - Have jurisdiction over National Championships in its discipline and institute, conduct and manage these Championships under Regulation 18.
Much of Regulation 18 is focused towards bid process & event finances. The only items somewhat relevant are items H & I which at least 90 days prior to the competition give the CEO an opportunity to either accept or reject committee assignments for referees, jurors of appeals etc for cause. It would follow that if someone was serving in that capacity at the event, they were approved by the CEO.
So where does the Staff figure into all this when it comes to events? Well, the bylaws state:
B. Duties: This corporation shall have the following duties:
4. Sanctioning of events: Sanctioning Athletics competition under these Bylaws and the Operating Regulations;
5. Participation in competition: Providing for participation by Athletes, coaches, trainers, managers,
administrators, and officials in Athletics competition, under the provisions of these Bylaws and the Operating
Regulations, and provide for protections guaranteed by the Sports Act, and in Article 16;
REGULATION 10
NATIONAL OFFICE STAFF
A. Staff activities: The staff shall, under the direction of the CEO, perform the following duties:
3. National championships: In conjunction with the appropriate sport committees, advertise, schedule, manage, and conduct national championships under Regulation 18;
As is clearly laid out above per the rules and bylaws of our sport, this chain of command and the execution of the meet when it comes to the competition & rules governing the competition has minimal overlap with the National Staff.
Now I'm not saying this is how it has and does actually work, but this provides the foundation for arguing for how is SHOULD work.
It all leads to a chair of a committee that we as members of USATF elect.