With Every Cloud There is a Silver Lining
By Sandy Knapp
USA Gymnastics Chairman of the Board
You've heard the saying, "With every cloud there is a silver lining." USA Gymnastics has been living under a little cloud ever since Kathy Scanlan accepted a new position as the President of the Seattle Bid Committee for the 2012 Olympic Games. Fortunately, the silver lining came shining through when the USA Gymnastics' Search Committee unanimously recommended Bob Colarossi to fill the vacancy created by Kathy's departure.
Bob, who is the fifth president of USA Gymnastics, was endorsed by the Executive Committee and approved by the Board of Directors. He assumed his new position in mid-July.
"It is an honor to have the opportunity to provide leadership to the American gymnastics community," said Colarossi. "Our objective will be to create an environment for success both on the medal platform in Sydney and on the floors of the thousands of gymnastics clubs across the nation."
Let me tell you a little about Bob's background. Bob most recently served as President of the Massachusetts Sports Partnership, where he has successfully attracted and managed a number of major national sporting events, ranging from the 1996 Olympic Gymnastics Team Trials to the upcoming 2001 U.S. Figure Skating National Championships. His background in gymnastics is equally impressive. He is a former competitive gymnast, coach of a national champion and owner/operator of the Massachusetts Gymnastics Center.
Bob offers a rare combination of sports business experience and extensive knowledge of the sport of gymnastics. This is one of the most important positions within the Olympic movement, so it was imperative that we select a person with the qualifications, skills and background to lead this sport into the 21st century.
Colarossi's selection culminates a nationwide search conducted by a select committee chaired by 1984 Olympic gold medalist Peter Vidmar. "The committee established a list of qualifications we believed would be vital to successfully leading USA Gymnastics into the new millennium," said Vidmar. "Bob's professional and personal characteristics provided the best fit for those criteria, making him the unanimous choice of the search committee." Bob has not only participated in the sport as a competitor, coach and club owner but has also been involved with USA Gymnastics at the committee level, ranging from its Strategic Planning Committee to co-authoring the current women's age group compulsory routines. His events experience is highlighted by his role as Executive Director of the 1996 U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials but also includes floor manager at USA Gymnastics events in 1986, 1994 and 1995, host coordinator for the 1986 USA/USSR Challenge and executive director of the 1992 Junior Olympic National Championships. He also has international coaching experience, coaching the Norwegian Gymnastics Federation women's team at a number of events from 1986-1991 and serving as its delegation leader for a European Junior Cup.
Bob and Kathy will work together for a short period to make a smooth transition. We are fortunate that Kathy's new position allowed her to remain with USA Gymnastics during the search process and during this transition period.
Kathy has been a creative and very effective leader for USA Gymnastics for the past four years and we will greatly miss her contributions. We must press ahead however because we intend to maintain the momentum that our organization now has as we strive toward our goal of medal-winning performances in the 2000 Olympic Games.
Kathy's departure simply creates an exciting and challenging opportunity for Bob who will lead us into the next century, a time which we hope is filled with some silver and lots of gold!
USA Gymnastics Presidents/Executive Directors
Frank Bare, 1963-1980; Roger Counsil, 1980-1983; Mike Jacki, 1983-1993; Kathy Scanlan, 1994-1998; Bob Colarossi, 1998-This article appears in the August 1998 issue of Technique, Vol. 18, No. 8.
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