#FindAdam Tour 2017: Colorado
TFAA President, Adam Nelson, has embarked on a multi-city tour of the United States to personally meet with track & field athletes and other stakeholders. Colorado was his second stop after Albuquerque, NM, site of the USA Indoor Track & Field Championships earlier this month. Follow the TFAA on Twitter to #FindAdam in a city near you.
By Adam Nelson
This past week I traveled to Colorado to meet with athletes and others in Boulder and Colorado Springs. While communication via phone, text and email are effective for updates, nothing can replace the live interaction with our members and other stakeholders.
On this trip I had the opportunity to connect with a large group of distance runners and the founder of the Clean Sport Collective in Boulder. In Colorado Springs I met with Travis Tygart and spoke with the entire staff at USADA. I followed that meeting with a conversation with the USOC’s athlete Ombudsman Kacie Wallace.
These conversations are invaluable and confirm a shared interest in supporting athletes’ rights, clean sport and the Olympic movement. Yet, more often than not I feel that the athletes and the other stakeholders are at conflict with each other. It’s my belief that most of our conflict stems from a lack of face-to-face interaction. We are all on the same team looking at the same problems with slightly different perspectives.
In speaking with the athletes in Boulder, it’s clear that the current system is doing a poor job on educating athletes about the “profession” of Olympic sport.
Athletes do not know the basics of Olympic sport structure, commercial rights as it pertains to team events and as defined by the Ted Stevens Act, and the basics of due process that exist to protect the athlete in a multitude of situations.
These same concerns were discussed with officials at USADA as well as with the USOC Ombudsman. The unfortunate fact is that uneducated athletes can easily and unintentionally be steered in the wrong direction. We — the athletes — need to change this, but how to change it?
Earlier this month the TFAA sent Lashinda Demus to The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College for an immersive, 3-week, executive education program focused on helping professional athletes and servicemen & women learn the language of business to ease the transition into their non-athletic careers. Unquestionably, all athletes spend the bulk of their time perfecting their craft. However, it seems reasonable that many athletes might want to invest more of their time in learning the business of Olympic sports while this knowledge is relevant. An informed & educated athlete — now that’s a novel concept. The more informed we are as a body, the better guidance we can offer the stakeholders of the sport — IOC, USOC, IAAF, USATF, WADA, USADA and others — and the better we can hold them accountable for their performances across multiple topics as well.
I picked up so much amazing information and feedback this week that would be lost without the face-to-face interaction. That’s why I’m doing this #FindAdam road tour. My next trips will take me to Phoenix, Southern California and the Pacific Northwest. Hope to see you on the road!
About the TFAA
The Track & Field Athletes Association (TFAA) is a 501(c)(4) organization formed to support the rights and interests of professional track & field athletes. We are the Athlete’s Voice. Visit trackfieldaa.com for more information.
