SportsTravel Catches Up With US Speedskating Executive Director Ted Morris

Jason Gewirtz has been on the ground in Italy throughout the Winter Olympics, talking with CEOs of various U.S. national governing bodies. Check out each interview here:

Matt Farrell, U.S. Figure Skating

Dean Gemmell, USA Curling

Sophie Goldschmidt, U.S. Ski & Snowboard

Pat Kelleher, USA Hockey

Aron McGuire, USA Bobsled/Skeleton

MILAN — Speedskating in the United States may very well be having a moment. Jordan Stolz has already won two golds in one event (the 500 meters and 1,000 meters), joining legend Eric Heiden in 1980 as the only men to win both events at the same Winter Olympics.

At the helm of the national governing body is Ted Morris. SportsTravel caught up with him on his way into the Milan convention center that is staging the long track discipline of the sport. He discussed the rise of Stolz, how some of the NGB’s events can be staged in multipurpose arenas and more.

SportsTravel: Your sport in Milan is being staged in a temporary venue in a convention center, which is a little odd, I would imagine, for speedskating. What are your thoughts about where they’ve put you here?

Morris: You know, the athletes aren’t complaining about the ice. They like it. I think it’s a fantastic environment. And so a lot of that field of play is fantastic. I think we all think that the back of house could be a little bit stronger. There’s not as much food and beverage available for fans, the bathrooms, those kind of things. It’s a big, huge space, and yet they’re not using it. But the venue itself is great, they’ve really done a fantastic job.

SportsTravel: Would you ever consider doing domestic events even temporarily in a convention center or would it be too many logistics to overcome?

Morris: For short track, absolutely. And in fact, the Dutch have done that a lot in short track. They’ve created 12,000-seat arenas in convention centers, multipurpose venues. And we’d like to do that. We think there’s actually a great opportunity there, because short track has to be an Olympic-sized ice sheet, and there are none of those left in America. And then it has to have no boards, too. So they’re very specific in what we need, and that’s really the opportunity for us. We hope we get some cities interested in hosting.

SportsTravel: Jordan Stolz has got the potential to be a real breakthrough athlete here. How much does that excite you as the head of the NGB?

Morris: It’s been pretty far since we had someone of that caliber. It’s great having a horse like him and feeling so confident that you know that if he skates well, he’s going to get a medal here. It’s a great way to kind of kick things off, and hopefully it will be a good medal haul for all of these Games.

SportsTravel: How is the sport doing overall? How are you feeling domestically in the U.S. about the state of the sport, the growth of the sport?

Morris: It’s good. Membership is always the biggest challenge. Getting more people skating is tough. But we think Jordan is a breakout star. All of America can learn about him. A lot of kids get excited about wanting to speedskate the same way that Erin Jackson inspired people four years ago, and Apolo Ohno inspired people 16 years ago. With that, we’re super excited about the coverage on NBC. So many more people can access these events and watch them live. All those things should add up to, hopefully, good growth for us. Then, of course, the big carrot is Salt Lake in 2034.

SportsTravel: Let’s talk about that. You’re a Utah-based NGB. Are you already putting any thought as you’re here in Milan about that event?

Morris: Because (the organizers) are in Utah, we talk to them all the time. You know, we’re really tied at the hip already and working with them already. We’ve got to do more just to grow the sport. I mean, we think there’s that opportunity in Utah that hopefully we can invest a little bit in development, and maybe create a few more Olympians for 2034 and beyond. There’s lots of optimism and we’re certainly excited about what we can do on our own home ice eight years from now.

SportsTravel: Lastly, Erin Jackson was the U.S. flag bearer at the Opening Ceremony. That’s a nice touch for speedskating …

Morris: We’re actually back to back because Brittany (Bowe) did it in 2022. So two amazing athletes. We’re so excited that they were able to lead Team USA into the stadium.

SportsTravel: You’re going to have to keep the streak going four years from now …

Morris: Oh yeah, exactly. Jordan Stolz 2030. That’s our mantra.