Dex, Revisited: Theoretical Problems with the Qwest Deal
The main problem I have with the Qwest sponsorship deal is the way in which athletes are forced to pay their own way to world cups if they do not wear the Qwest logo. I believe that this leverage is artificial, improper, and may not be based on the actual allocation of funds within US Speedskating.
First of all, to say that world cups are "optional" or irrelevant to either the world championships or the Olympic Games is inaccurate. World cups can be used to determine a country's number of spots for the Olympic Games and for world single distance championships. They have also been used to qualify individual athletes for these events. It may be improper for US Speedskating to interfere with an athlete's chance to pre-qualify for the 2006 Olympics by refusing to pay their way to a world cup, depending on the Olympic qualification requirements that will be determined by USS and the USOC.
Second, it may be improper for USS to interfere with an athlete's chances of earning USOC performance-based funding. In order to obtain this funding, a speedskater must place in the top 8 in either the world single distance championships, or in overall world cup standings. In order to score enough world cup points to place in the top 8, it is important to attend as many world cups as possible. This becomes very difficult if the athlete has to pay his or her own way.
Just how difficult and competitive is it to place high enough to earn USOC funding? Even the great Chris Witty was dealing with the uncertainty towards the end of last season.
Finally, where exactly does USS's world cup travel money come from? As far as I know, money that is given from the government (or the USOC) to the federation is, unless otherwise specified, supposed to be used for athletes who qualify to represent their country in international competition. This money shouldn't be pooled with money from sponsors, only to be redistributed by who-knows-what method, for various purposes such as clinics, meetings, V.I.P. treatment for "advisors" flown in for World Championship events, and tours of Olympic host cities for at least a few athletes whose chances of making the team are dubious at best. (Of course, I haven't seen the budget, because not only were my former agent's requests for a copy of the budget ignored, but the treasurer's report also wasn't posted on the USS website's link to the spring board meeting. This is why I can only speculate on these topics.)
A federation's first responsibility is sending its qualified athletes to international events. Anything else is secondary. None of the things I listed above are justification for making someone like Derek Parra pay for his own hotel room and food on a world cup trip.
Besides, weren't we told that the Qwest money was being set aside "for development" of the sport? Then, by definition, the Qwest money is not going towards world cup travel, and therefore skaters who breach the contract are not interfering with the pot of world cup travel money. Therefore, there is no logical reason to make them pay their own way to these competitions.
In the end, the only reason why the contract-breachers were forced to pay their own expenses was because US Speedskating said they had to, and US Speedskating is the boss. In this way, they used artificial leverage to bend the backs of the skaters in order to cover their own poor business management and sponsorship negotiations.
The main problem I have with the Qwest sponsorship deal is the way in which athletes are forced to pay their own way to world cups if they do not wear the Qwest logo. I believe that this leverage is artificial, improper, and may not be based on the actual allocation of funds within US Speedskating.
First of all, to say that world cups are "optional" or irrelevant to either the world championships or the Olympic Games is inaccurate. World cups can be used to determine a country's number of spots for the Olympic Games and for world single distance championships. They have also been used to qualify individual athletes for these events. It may be improper for US Speedskating to interfere with an athlete's chance to pre-qualify for the 2006 Olympics by refusing to pay their way to a world cup, depending on the Olympic qualification requirements that will be determined by USS and the USOC.
Second, it may be improper for USS to interfere with an athlete's chances of earning USOC performance-based funding. In order to obtain this funding, a speedskater must place in the top 8 in either the world single distance championships, or in overall world cup standings. In order to score enough world cup points to place in the top 8, it is important to attend as many world cups as possible. This becomes very difficult if the athlete has to pay his or her own way.
Just how difficult and competitive is it to place high enough to earn USOC funding? Even the great Chris Witty was dealing with the uncertainty towards the end of last season.
Finally, where exactly does USS's world cup travel money come from? As far as I know, money that is given from the government (or the USOC) to the federation is, unless otherwise specified, supposed to be used for athletes who qualify to represent their country in international competition. This money shouldn't be pooled with money from sponsors, only to be redistributed by who-knows-what method, for various purposes such as clinics, meetings, V.I.P. treatment for "advisors" flown in for World Championship events, and tours of Olympic host cities for at least a few athletes whose chances of making the team are dubious at best. (Of course, I haven't seen the budget, because not only were my former agent's requests for a copy of the budget ignored, but the treasurer's report also wasn't posted on the USS website's link to the spring board meeting. This is why I can only speculate on these topics.)
A federation's first responsibility is sending its qualified athletes to international events. Anything else is secondary. None of the things I listed above are justification for making someone like Derek Parra pay for his own hotel room and food on a world cup trip.
Besides, weren't we told that the Qwest money was being set aside "for development" of the sport? Then, by definition, the Qwest money is not going towards world cup travel, and therefore skaters who breach the contract are not interfering with the pot of world cup travel money. Therefore, there is no logical reason to make them pay their own way to these competitions.
In the end, the only reason why the contract-breachers were forced to pay their own expenses was because US Speedskating said they had to, and US Speedskating is the boss. In this way, they used artificial leverage to bend the backs of the skaters in order to cover their own poor business management and sponsorship negotiations.
posted by Eva at 5:17 PM
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