USADSF eNewsletter - April 11, 2005

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USA Deaf Sports Federation is a non-profit sport organization serving the deaf and hard of hearing. For information about USADSF, visit http://www.usdeafsports.org or send an e-mail to .

Recent developments at the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) have many national governing bodies and affiliated organizations scratching their heads and wondering if their annual funding from the USOC will be reduced or even cut altogether. USADSF is not alone. During a recent dialogue with USOC on insurance, USADSF has received word in clear and unambiguous language that USOC funding for Deaflympic programs has come to an end.

In addition to publishing this free eNewsletter, USADSF offers a subscription-based monthly newspaper, the SIGNews. The Communication Service for the Deaf (CSD) publishes SIGNews, and sports is among a wide range of categories covered. For subscription information, please visit the SIGNews website. CSD has been a strong partner and supporter of USADSF, and both organizations strongly believe that a well-informed community of readers will expand the opportunities for the deaf and hard of hearing in sports as well as in other areas of interest.

The SIGNews staff has put together a comprehensive coverage of the 2005 Summer Deaflympics in the February 2005 issue, complete with results and photos. An article on the overall medal performance of US Teams at the past five Summer Deaflympics will be published in the May 2005 issue of SIGNews, so subscribe now!

A link to the Events page on the website has now replaced the list of upcoming events found at the end of each eNewsletter. This change will ensure that the latest information will always be available on the website.

In response to a request from USADSF President Bobbie Beth Scoggins to waive the costs associated with TravMed, a USOC-provided foreign assistance insurance program, for the 2005 US Deaflympic Team, the request was granted. But, in the April 5, 2005 memo from USOC acting CEO James Scherr, the USOC made itself clear that "the mission of the U.S. Olympic Committee has been redefined to focus on the Olympic and Paralympic Games," therefore, "funding requests for Deaflympic programs will not be available in the future."

On February 15, USOC announced employment terminations of 26 people from its Colorado Springs offices. The staffing size now stands at 290 full-time employees. The budget is described in detail in this link to USOC February 15, 2005 press release.

The USOC board of directors now has just 11 seats, down from 125, and 4 standing committees, down from 23. The chair is Peter Ueberroth, organizer of the 1984 Summer Olympics, Time magazine's Man of the Year in 1984, and a former Major League Baseball commissioner. Ueberroth's board sought greater efficiency and now approves the budget on an annual basis instead of every four years. Ueberroth said that USOC should focus its energy and money on athletes.

The Athletes' Advisory Council and National Governing Body Council nominated two seats each. Independent Directors and U.S. Members of International Olympic Committee occupy three other seats each. Here is a link to USOC June 14, 2004 press release listing the names and background of each board director.

The Paralympics will receive $4.8 million from the 2005 USOC budget, an increase of $2 million from 2001. Eight-four percent of the $116.7 million in planned spending for 2005 will go to athletes and sports federations.

The next USOC board of directors meeting will be held during the Olympic Assembly on April 28-29 in Phoenix. The Olympic Assembly was established by the USOC in October 2003 "to foster communication, cooperation and the development of new initiatives involving the U.S. Olympic Committee and the diverse sport organizations involved in the Olympic Movement in order to advance and achieve the organization’s mission." (USOC press release, titled "USOC Inaugural Olympic Assembly to Meet in April", dated February 1, 2005)

On March 31, CSD announced the launching of an innovative video relay service, the CSDVRS. Its Internet address is www.csdvrs.com.

CSDVRS is available Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 12 a.m. CST and on weekends/holidays from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. CST. For your convenience, the CSDVRS graphical logo, as shown to the left of this paragraph, is provided on the USADSF website's home page to take you to the CSDVRS site.

CSD, the first deaf-owned video relay service provider, issued a text-oriented and video-oriented press release.

The Sports page on the USADSF website will include contact information for the orienteering group once its application to affiliate with USADSF is approved. USADSF is excited about the opportunity to have orienteering join its family of sports.

Orienteering: (April 10 ) The Delaware Valley Orienteering Association (DVOA) held an event for the deaf and hard of hearing participants on April 10th at Ridley Creek State Park in Pennsylvania and will have another one on April 24th at Valley Forge National Historical Park - Mount Joy in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.

Snowboarding: (April 9) Jeff Pollock competed in the Open Class Men event during the USA Snowboarding Association Nationals at Copper Mountain, Colorado. He placed 10th in Giant Slalom, 16th in Slalom, and 12th overall in Alpine rankings. The results are posted at http://www.usasa.org/Copper05/index.html.

Team Handball: (March 25-27) The US Team Handball hosted a clinic at Model Secondary School for the Deaf in Washington, DC. At least five athletes were invited to compete with the team at the USA Team Handball National Championships on April 29-May 1, 2005 in Houston, Texas.