United States Of America NOC News
05 July 2024 - Find here the latest news from the National Olympic Committee: events, courses, general assemblies and elections, trophies and much more.
05 July 2024 - The USOPC’s Board of Directors has voted to extend USOPC CEO Sarah Hirshland’s contract. With the five-year contract renewal and extension, she will continue to lead the US Olympic and Paralympic Movement through LA 2028 and beyond. Since joining in August 2018, Hirshland has propelled the USOPC forward with her strategic vision and dedication to athlete well-being. Notably, she has prioritised athlete protection, rights and support, ensuring a safe and empowering environment for all. Looking ahead, her leadership will be instrumental in achieving the goals of the 2024-2028 Strategic Plan, developed in collaboration with athletes and National Governing Bodies. More details at www.usopc.org.
18 December 2023 - The USOPC, in partnership with Olympic Solidarity and Panam Sports, hosted the 5th Americas Best Practices Symposium on 9 and 10 December in Miami. The leaders of all 40 active NOCs in the Pan American family attended the symposium with the goal of advancing sporting excellence in their countries. Topics discussed at the symposium included strategic planning, sports analytics, good financial governance, performance innovation, social impact, athlete safety and mental health, the legacy of the Pan American Games, digital marketing and more. USOPC Secretary General Sarah Hirshland, Panam Sports President and IOC Member Neven Ilic, Panam Sports Vice-President Susanne Lyons and Olympic Solidarity Associate Director Joanna Zipser-Graves were a few of the featured speakers during the symposium. Panam Sports also hosted the 2nd Panam Sports Awards on 9 December. Full news release here.
10 July 2023 - The USOPC has just published its 2022 Impact Report, which celebrates the accomplishments and collaboration across its entire community in 2022.
01 May 2023 - Herbert Paul Jr. Douglas, who won a long jump bronze medal at the Olympic Games London 1948, died on 22 April at the age of 101. At 14, Douglas, a Pittsburgh native, met the legendary athlete Jesse Owens, the four-time Olympic gold medallist at the Olympic Games Berlin 1936. Owens spoke at an elementary school near the Hazelwood neighbourhood where Douglas grew up. Douglas, who remained friendly with Owens, co-founded the non-profit International Athletic Association and created the Jesse Owens Global Award for Peace.
7 June 2022 - The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) recently welcomed 10 members of the Ukrainian curling national team to Salt Lake City, where they will live and train this summer. The delegation is being hosted by the Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation as part of an all-encompassing humanitarian and sporting initiative to provide a safe haven and training opportunities amid the unrest and turmoil in their home country. The athletes are living at the University of Utah and training at the Utah Olympic Oval and Weber County Ice Arena – all venues used during the Olympic Winter Games Salt Lake City 2002.
02 May 2022 - In mid-April, the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) co-hosted the Pan-American Association of Sports Confederations (ACODEPA) Executive Committee in Colorado Springs. The two entities discussed strengthening relations for the benefit of their organisations, stakeholders and athletes. The partnership with ACODEPA involves a commitment by both organisations to promote stronger ties between US National Federations and their respective continental confederations, so that US National Federations can be more active and relevant in building strong continental sports confederation relationships for the benefit of all athletes in the Americas. With the LA28 Games on the horizon, ACODEPA and the USOPC have a shared vision to maximise opportunities to strengthen sport in the Pan-American region. More info at www.teamusa.org.
18 March 2022 - The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) has announced that Tervel Dlagnev was awarded the bronze medal from the Olympic Games London 2012 in the men’s 120kg freestyle wrestling during an honorary Olympic Medal Reallocation Ceremony on 6 March in Lincoln, Nebraska. The ceremony was held in advance of the Big Ten Conference Wrestling Championship finals at the University of Nebraska, where Dlagnev serves as an assistant wrestling coach. The bronze medal was presented to Dlagnev by IOC Member Anita DeFrantz, a member of the USOPC board of directors (see photo). Rich Bender, USA Wrestling’s Executive Director and a fellow USOPC board member, was also present. Full info here.
01 February 2021 - On 1 January, the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) added six new members to its Board of Directors, elevating athlete representation to nine with Olympic or Paralympic ties, and furthering its commitment to diversity with greater female and minority voices. The new directors include: Gordon Crawford, US Olympic & Paralympic Foundation representative; Muffy Davis, IPC representative; Donna de Varona, athlete at-large representative; John Naber, athlete at-large representative; Dexter Paine, National Governing Bodies Council representative; and Daria Schneider, Athletes’ Advisory Council representative. The USOPC also recognises outgoing board members Robbie Bach, Bill Marolt and Whitney Ping for their steadying voices and commitment to bettering the movements. Full details about the USOPC Board of Directors here.
30 November 2020 - The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) announced that Panam Sports has upgraded boxer Naomi Graham and karate athlete Kamran Madani to gold medals, and open water swimmer Taylor Abbott to the silver medal, for their performances at the Pan-American Games Lima 2019. The medal reallocations are a result of three athletes receiving disqualification rulings for doping offences and having their medal wins revoked. The medals were presented to the athletes during a virtual medal ceremony on 18 November hosted by USOPC CEO Sarah Hirshland, USOPC President Susanne Lyons and Panam Sports President Neven Ilic, with national governing body representatives, coaches, teammates, family members and friends. Full details here.
23 November 2020 - On 17 November, the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) shared details of the new Team USA Athlete Marketing Platform (AMP) pilot programme, a first-of-its-kind digital marketplace that expands athlete sponsorship and marketing opportunities. Created in cooperation with the Athletes’ Advisory Council and National Governing Bodies Council, AMP is an opt-in programme that connects Team USA sponsors and licensees directly with athletes, providing incremental revenue opportunities and marketing exposure for Team USA athletes. Read more about the programme here and read Olympic silver medallist Chris Mazdzer’s reaction here.
16 November 2020 - The US Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) has announced that the LA84 Foundation recently awarded USD 1.3 million in grants to help youth sports organisations (details here). The LA84 Foundation was created with a share of the Olympic Games Los Angeles 1984 surplus and began operations in 1985 as a grant-making and educational foundation. The Foundation has supported thousands of Southern California youth sports organisations through grant-making, while also training coaches, commissioning research, convening conferences and acting as a national thought leader on important youth sports issues. For more information about the LA84 Foundation, click here.
30 October 2020 - In partnership with the Athletes’ Advisory Council and national governing bodies, the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) has announced that more than USD 1.4 million was raised for the COVID Athlete Assistance Fund by the US Olympic & Paralympic Foundation, giving 1,220 US athletes a supplemental one-time stipend of USD 1,163. The fund was established in July to assist athletes who have incurred financial hardship as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the postponement of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020. For more information, click here.
25 September 2020 - On 28 August, the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC), Athletes’ Advisory Council, National Governing Bodies and the US Olympians and Paralympians Association convened the 44 members comprising the Team USA Council on Racial and Social Justice. The athlete-led council, formed to address the rules and systems in the US Olympic and Paralympic movements that create barriers to progress, is committed to working collaboratively to provide solutions and recommendations with the aim of eradicating social injustice and cultivating change through strengthened athlete voices. Full details here. In addition, the USOPC has announced the commitment of the first Mental Health Ambassadors to provide philanthropic funding to the organisation in order to advance its support of mental health programming for Team USA athletes. The ambassadors, Yucca and Gary Rieschel, have pledged to support the mental well-being of US Olympians, Paralympians and hopefuls with a gift of USD 1.5 million to the United States Olympic and Paralympic Foundation, the USOPC’s non-profit arm. The gift also establishes a new Mental Health Fund, which will supplement important funding for USOPC mental health offerings. Full details here.
18 March 2019 - Cyclist Kelly Catlin (photo), America’s three-time world champion and 2016 Olympic silver medallist, has died in California at the age of 23. She won three consecutive team pursuit world titles, in 2016, 2017 and 2018, plus a silver medal at the Olympic Games Rio 2016, and two individual pursuit bronze medals at the World Championships in 2017 and 2018. More details here on the US Olympic Committee website.