CEO CORNER

 

 

CEO Report – March, 2009

This is my first report to the membership in 2009 and I want to express to you my continued amazement with the potential for growth and opportunity that I see with Table Tennis in the USA.  I was channel surfing one night recently and I was pleasantly surprised to see two Table Tennis themed films on at the same time on different channels!  We also know that several high profile film stars are involved with the opening of a Table Tennis centered bar in New York. One of our rising young-stars, Ariel Hsing, was recently interviewed with her coach, Dennis Davis, on the nationally syndicated Bonnie Hunt show. We are seeing more and more positive signs of Table Tennis presence in the USA and I attribute much of that to the simple re-discovery of the intrinsic vale of our sport in these difficult economic times.  I was also recently pleasantly surprised to see that the Colorado Springs Olympic Training Center resident gymnasts were playing Table Tennis in between exercise bouts as part of their training routine!

 

In early January of this year, Ping Pong Diplomacy veteran, Judy Hoarfrost was joined by Ariel Hsing and Peter Li in Beijing for a series of friendly matches staged by the Chinese in Beijing. This program sought to recognize the important historical role Table Tennis played in establishing diplomatic relations between China and the USA.  With the injection of youth into this program on both sides, the Chinese have signaled their belief that Ping Pong Diplomacy will indeed live on and on! 

 

On the governance side, it was reported at the December Annual Assembly in Las Vegas that nine (9) Advisory Committees (Officials and Rules, Tournaments, Seniors, Editorial, Clubs, Juniors, Coaching, Hardbat and High Performance  were approved by the USATT Board and by the time this is published, we hope that each Advisory Committee (AC) will be fully named and functioning under the leadership of their respective Chairperson.  There was an excellent response from the general membership from those wishing to put their names in for consideration as an Advisory Committee member. As part of the reformation effort, the Bylaws limit AC membership to a maximum of five (5) persons to include the Chairperson.  That means that each AC is composed of a Chairperson, three additional members recommended by the Chairperson and approved by the Board, along with one athlete member nominated by the USATT Athlete Advisory Council.  I want to personally thank all of the members who did apply for AC consideration and to assure them that we will look for additional service opportunities for all of them if they were not selected for a position on one of the Advisory Committees.

 

As part of a Media and Content Agreement with the USOC, at our July 2009 U.S. Open, there will be a camera crew there to capture several ‘stories’ for posting on the USATT linked USOC website.  This will be the first step toward archiving USATT events and then posting them on the USOC website for future viewers to enjoy.  All of this is leading up to the planned Olympic Network in which all Olympic Program sports will be featured on a regular basis. The USOC Olympic Committee is being responsive to many Olympic Program sports that simply otherwise have limited opportunity for broadcast exposure.  We see additional opportunities for our sponsors through exposure on the USATT linked USOC website.  We are currently exploring means to make that happen.

 

We have initiated a co-operative partnership with the U.S. Paralympics to serve the needs of our National Team and Paralympic athletes.  As an organization we are committed to nurturing and staging Paralympic events in our 2009 National Championships and also within the range of events that USATT sanctions wherever possible. We are actively supporting a movement to stage the 2010 U.S. Para Open with a local organizing committee and the U.S. Paralympic Division.  We hope to have an announcement in the near future.

 

To align ourselves as an organization with present industry standards, we will soon initiate a background screening program within the organization that will initially include national team coaches and staff, all members of the Board of Directors and all national staff members.  This program will eventually expand to cover those in leadership positions within USATT sponsored camps and open training sessions. 

 

I recently received a resignation letter from Dan Seemiller as Head Coach of the Men’s National Team.  We all know Dan to be an individual of superior integrity, achievement and work ethic.  His record of accomplishment as a player, coach and administrator are all top drawer.  We will miss him in this leadership position but he promises to not be too far removed and available for suitable USATT requests for services in the coming years.  We will certainly take him up on this offer.

 

One of my personal objectives as the CEO of USATT and as has been expressed by the Board on more than one occasions, is to constantly seek out ways to re-establish an overall trust within the organization.  This will be an on-going endeavor but one in which we are beginning to see signs of some advancement in this critical area!  Until my next opportunity to address the membership, sincere best regards.

 

mdc