A Final Message to the Nameless Ones:
This goes out to all the good people of the sport of speedskating who are afraid to speak out against the federation. What you need to do is to find a way to find common ground, gather together, and speak out. Find strength in numbers.
Many of you think that the only way to protect your children is to stay on the good side of those who tyrannize you; to maintain their trust. Have you ever thought of completely restructuring the system? Look at the mess that has been made of the women's Olympic Long Track Team this year. How much longer will you allow this to go on?
I have stuck my neck out repeatedly to tell the truth, because I am not capable of living a lie. I can't kiss the asses of people I hate. In my speedskating career, I have lived according to my own rules, where the only things that mattered were the electronic timing system and my middle finger in their face.
I had hoped I could be a catalyst for change within the sport of speedskating. But I have found that every time I turned around, there was no one behind me! Now you are on your own.
Next week, I'm starting a new full-time job and will be leaving the life of an athlete behind. In the extremely unlikely case that I would ever compete seriously in speedskating again, I would compete for another country. U.S. Speedskating will no longer be relevant to my life.
I will leave you with The Protocol's List of Things That Must Go: If you can identify the following people by the screw-ups they have made, then you are on your way.
1. This person is a pawn of the Minnesota Mafia, with a backwards vision for the future of the sport.
2. The only thing that future generations of speedskaters learned from this person's "experiments" is that they don't want him as a coach.
3. It is said that "He knows what's right, but won't say anything." If somebody's dog took a dump in this person's living room, he would pretend it wasn't there, and would hope that the smell would go away on its own.
4. This person is a "wanna-be Big Shot" with no substance behind his arrogance. Botching the Qwest sponsorship deal was his biggest mistake.
This goes out to all the good people of the sport of speedskating who are afraid to speak out against the federation. What you need to do is to find a way to find common ground, gather together, and speak out. Find strength in numbers.
Many of you think that the only way to protect your children is to stay on the good side of those who tyrannize you; to maintain their trust. Have you ever thought of completely restructuring the system? Look at the mess that has been made of the women's Olympic Long Track Team this year. How much longer will you allow this to go on?
I have stuck my neck out repeatedly to tell the truth, because I am not capable of living a lie. I can't kiss the asses of people I hate. In my speedskating career, I have lived according to my own rules, where the only things that mattered were the electronic timing system and my middle finger in their face.
I had hoped I could be a catalyst for change within the sport of speedskating. But I have found that every time I turned around, there was no one behind me! Now you are on your own.
Next week, I'm starting a new full-time job and will be leaving the life of an athlete behind. In the extremely unlikely case that I would ever compete seriously in speedskating again, I would compete for another country. U.S. Speedskating will no longer be relevant to my life.
I will leave you with The Protocol's List of Things That Must Go: If you can identify the following people by the screw-ups they have made, then you are on your way.
1. This person is a pawn of the Minnesota Mafia, with a backwards vision for the future of the sport.
2. The only thing that future generations of speedskaters learned from this person's "experiments" is that they don't want him as a coach.
3. It is said that "He knows what's right, but won't say anything." If somebody's dog took a dump in this person's living room, he would pretend it wasn't there, and would hope that the smell would go away on its own.
4. This person is a "wanna-be Big Shot" with no substance behind his arrogance. Botching the Qwest sponsorship deal was his biggest mistake.
posted by Eva at 12:53 PM
<< Home