Sports Organizations

The NCAA is undergoing a restructuring before its new president, Mark Emmert, begins his tenure October 4. As part of that effort, Jim Isch, who has served as the NCAA’s interim president since September 2009 following the death of President Myles Brand, has been appointed chief operating officer. Isch was previously the organization’s senior vice-president for administration and chief financial officer. Before joining the NCAA, he was vice-chancellor for finance and administration at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, from 1994–1998. Greg Shaheen, senior vice-president of Division I men’s basketball and business strategies, has been named interim executive vice-president of championships and business strategies and will oversee the NCAA’s 88 championships. Emmert also announced the departure of Tom Jernstedt, executive vice-president of Division I baseball, football and women’s basketball.

Colorado Springs-based USA Triathlon has announced the departure of Skip Gilbert as executive director. Gilbert joined the national govern-ing body in 2005 and served as the chair of the USOC’s National Governing Bodies Council. He is also chairman of the Association for Chief Executives of Sport. Tim Yount, senior vice-president for sport development at USA Triathlon, will serve as acting executive director while a search committee seeks a replacement for Gilbert. Yount took on a similar role during a previous executive transition.

Hosts & Suppliers

Nancy Yawn has joined the board of directors of the National Association of Sports Commissions as co-chair of the marketing committee. Yawn is director of the Round Rock (Texas) Convention &Visitors Bureau.

The Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau has named Julie Coker senior vice-president of the convention division.  She worked most recently as general manager of the Hyatt Regency/Philadelphia at Penn’s Landing.

Cheryl Kilday has been appointed president and CEO of the Spokane Regional Convention & Visitors Bureau. Kilday was previously president and CEO of Visit Loudoun in Loudoun County, Virginia. She succeeds Harry Sladich, who was recently named executive vice-president of sales and marketing for Red Lion Hotels.

Sites & Venues

The inaugural Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic Los Angeles is scheduled to take place October 10 at Will Rogers State Park in Pacific Palisades, California. The event, organized by the champagne maker, aims to expose the sport of polo to the West Coast and follows a July event held in New York.

Austin, Texas, will host the Ironman 70.3 U.S. Collegiate Championship, to be held in conjunction with the annual Ironman 70.3 Austin, scheduled October 17. The race is expected to bring an additional 250 athletes to the city.

The Columbia (South Carolina) Regional Sports Council has won its bid to host the 2011 American Collegiate Hockey Association South Regional Playoffs. The event is scheduled February 18–19, 2011, at the Plex Indoor Sports & Ice in Irmo, South Carolina.

Sponsors & Licensing

The University of Texas men’s and women’s athletics programs have formed a sponsorship program with Branded Retail Energy in Dallas. The two organizations will form Texas Longhorns Energy, a service that will provide renewable energy to alumni and fans in deregulated regions of Texas. Customer accounts will raise money for sustainability initiatives for the university.

Two new sponsors have joined the Olympic Partner Program of the International Olympic Committee. Proctor & Gamble has become an official Olympic worldwide partner in the personal care and household products category through 2020, and the company will also work with several national Olympic committees worldwide. Dow Chemical will be the official chemistry company through 2020 and will be an official partner of the U.S. Olympic Committee and the U.S. Olympic Team.

The U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross has announced two new sponsorships for its 2010 season. Greenware, a provider of cup products made from plants, will be the title sponsor for the season. Its products will be in use at all Gran Prix events this year. Action Wipes, which makes a reusable, full-body-sized wet wipe, will serve as a sponsor for the second year, and its product will be used to clean up the muddy racers post-race.

Endurance Films, a video production company based in Louisville, has become an official supplier of USA Triathlon and will serve as the organization’s official film production company through 2011. Endurance Films will produce highlight videos for USAT’s national championship events, among other video projects. The two collaborated to create the USA Triathlon Training Series, released this year.

In Memoriam

Ted Stevens, the former Alaska senator and author of the 1978 Amateur Sports Act (now called the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act), died last month in a plane crash in his home state. Stevens was 86. The act established the United States Olympic Committee, provided for national governing bodies for each Olympic sport, and ensured legal protection for athletes.

“Senator Stevens was a tireless advocate of the Olympic Movement and its values,” said USOC CEO Scott Blackmun in a statement. “He was a champion of sport in America and our U.S. Olympic Teams.”.

And Finally…

Next month, a group of injured U.S. soldiers from the Air Force, Army and Marines will climb a 20,075-foot peak near Mount Everest. The expedition will be led by blind adventurer Erik Weihenmayer, who in 2001 became the only blind person ever to reach the summit of Mount Everest. His adventure was documented in the film “Farther Than the Eye Can See” directed by Michael Brown. Brown will also join the soldiers for their October climb. For more information, visit soldierstothesummit.org.