{"id":459836,"date":"2021-01-21T09:00:32","date_gmt":"2021-01-21T16:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=459836"},"modified":"2021-01-21T08:53:07","modified_gmt":"2021-01-21T15:53:07","slug":"chris-ramsey-present-past-future-cont","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/chris-ramsey-present-past-future-cont\/","title":{"rendered":"On The Record with USA Water Polo\u2019s Chris Ramsey: Present, Past, Future (Continued)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Continuing Swimming World’s<\/em> exclusive interview with Christopher Ramsey<\/strong>, CEO of USA Water Polo, the conversation picks up with USAWP’s executive director discussing financial challenges due to the cancellation of a majority of the organization’s premier events\u2014including the Junior Olympics, the world’s largest polo tournament\u2014because of the COVID-19 lockdown.<\/p>\n

Ramsey also spoke about USAWP Board Chair Michael Graff’s<\/strong> contribution to the organization the past 14 years. Graff, who twice has been extended by as board chair, has become one of the most recognizable figures in American polo. Scheduled to leave the board later this year, there are questions of how the organization will continue their board chair’s and CEO’s efforts through this current Olympic cycle and beyond.<\/p>\n

Editor’s Note: following is an edited and condensed transcript of a conversation on January 8 with Christopher Ramsey. The interview has been split into two sections; Part I was published on January 19<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

– The Junior Olympics appears to be like the masters\u2019 degree applicants who provide financial support for university\u2019s PhD programs. Could one say that its the membership who sustain our national team programs?<\/strong><\/p>\n

One of the things we\u2019ve done is streamline the pyramid, so that people understand it. There\u2019s local club participation, there are clubs that want to send teams to national and regional tournaments, Then, there\u2019s ODP [Olympic Development Program], where you can get involved at that level and see very clearly how you get to make an Olympic team.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve tried to do that for referees and coaches, and to make it much clearer what the path is.<\/p>\n

I think it\u2019s been really positive and people love it.<\/p>\n

– A big nut to crack is how athletes from outside California can break into the upper echelon of USAWP\u2019s talent pool. You know these challenges because of Bill Smith and what he’s accomplished with Greenwich Aquatics and their drive to develop athletes who can compete at a high level. It’s working: <\/strong>Ian Davidson said recently<\/a> that he views Greenwich athletes as roughly equal to California’s top polo athletes.<\/strong><\/p>\n

That\u2019s flattering. I\u2019ll tell you personally, I was involved with Bill because I lived in Greenwich and worked in New York. I was a volunteer coach and it\u2019s great that Ian and others in California now view Greenwich as an equal rival. That\u2019s a great accomplishment. The most satisfying thing to me is writing college recommendations for every kid on my 12U [Greenwich] team who not only wanted to go to college but also play water polo in college.<\/p>\n

\"ramsey-smile-jul19\"

Photo Courtesy: Artem Zinger<\/p><\/div>\n

That\u2019s part of what motivated me to take this job: recognizing the really positive impact that a great sports experience can have on kids and their lives. Not everybody\u2019s going to make an Olympic team, but however far you get there\u2019s a lot of value.<\/p>\n

I was proud those kids asked me to write those recommendations, and I still keep track of a lot of them and what they\u2019re doing with their lives.<\/p>\n

– 14 years with the organization, coming up on four Olympics, what are some noteworthy accomplishments that you and USAWP have achieved during that time?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The proviso I need to say up front is: Nobody does anything by themselves. One of the things I\u2019ve learned working at USA Water Polo is the importance of a team approach. A lot of the accomplishments on the part of the organization\u2014they\u2019re the result of a lot of people. It\u2019s not just me; I\u2019m only one of the cogs in the wheel here.<\/p>\n

Our financial accomplishments\u2014we keep metrics here which I put in the annual report. One of them is: Are we able to gain and devote more resources to our sport? We have a great track record doing that and that\u2019s one thing I feel very good about, going from near bankruptcy and a deficit of $750,000 to the financial position we are in now, is like night and day.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m very proud that we were able to do that and use those resources to become one of the fasted growing sports in the U.S. I\u2019m also proud that we doubled our membership since I\u2019ve been here and we\u2019re now growing at a faster rate outside California than in the state.<\/p>\n

Overhauling Junior Olympics. It\u2019s become the largest water polo tournament in the world and is something everybody looks forward to every year, and it gets better every year. I remember a couple of years ago at Stanford, walking around and seeing a USA Water Polo studio outside the pool, with interviews of Ashleigh Johnson<\/strong> watched by a bunch of kids with their water polo hats on.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not only become a tremendous competition but a place for our community to gather. I\u2019m really pleased about what\u2019s happened with JOs.<\/p>\n

I mentioned the membership growth and what I would say is: topping 50,000 members for the first time in 2019 is a really big deal. Really proud of that.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m really proud of our evolution of safety rules and procedures and the discipline with which that was done. I\u2019m proud of the board of directors we\u2019ve been able to recruit. These are exceptional people who care deeply about the sport. That\u2019s been a part of my experience in working with large non-profits with boards, to use their talents and energy effectively.<\/p>\n

Gotta say I feel pretty good about the women\u2019s team<\/a>. Don\u2019t know that I deserve much credit beside bringing Adam Krikorian<\/strong> in and making sure that he and that group have the resources that they need. The women\u2019s success has shadowed my tenure here; we hadn\u2019t won a gold medal until we got here and brought Adam in. We have now and are looking for our third in a few months in Tokyo\u2014I\u2019m really proud of the women and their performance.<\/p>\n

\"image2\"

Adam Krikorian with the USA women’s team at the 2019 FINA World Championships. Photo Courtesy: Orange Pictures<\/p><\/div>\n

The empowerment of women, the growth of women on our staff\u2014I think we\u2019re now two-thirds women on our staff\u2014on our board, where we\u2019re a third women, and our membership. That\u2019s tremendous: women are fabulous role models for all the members in our sport.<\/p>\n

Our Olympic women and their performance are just inspiring to me on all levels.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m pretty psyched about the guys, too. We got that silver medal in 2008\u2014it had been 20 years. We\u2019ve made a lot of strides in rebuilding that team and integrating the ODP program. You saw our team get their Olympic qualification at the Pan American Games in Peru; I think there\u2019s some real talent there. I\u2019m very eager to see how they do.<\/p>\n

[Tokyo Bound! Decisive Win Over Canada in Pan Am Water Polo Final Gives USA Men Gold, 2020 Olympics Berth<\/em><\/a>]<\/p>\n

Since we\u2019re talking about our men\u2019s and women\u2019s teams, I want to say I\u2019m proud that there\u2019s equal funding for men and women, both at the national team level and within our organization. My philosophy has been that men and women deserve an equal chance at making an Olympic team and competing. We\u2019ve always tried to divide the resources for those two teams down the middle, and we pretty much have.<\/p>\n

There are other sports in the Olympic movement that have a lot of controversy about who gets paid what, but we haven\u2019t had that in part because our philosophy is that women and men deserve an equal chance. We\u2019ve done that from a revenue point of view and that\u2019s part of the foundation in how we treat one another.<\/p>\n

Finally, I would say organizational stability. The point of the criticisms mentioned earlier\u2014there are some who would say I\u2019ve been around too long or others have, but I believe there has been a lot of change in all regards over the 14 years I\u2019ve been here. The organization has become more stable, more talented and has increased its capabilities. That\u2019s why the results we are seeing here. I also think our community has become far more generous.<\/p>\n

When I started there was $35,000 coming in charitable contributions. This year ballpark we\u2019ll probably have $1.5 million coming in\u2014including $700,000 in annual fund contributions. Those dollars go directly to athletes\u2014programs for growth and programs for high performance. Wonderful, absolutely wonderful!<\/p>\n

More than 10% of our members give\u2014what an endorsement of the organization and what it\u2019s doing.<\/p>\n

Those are some of the things that we should all be proud of, and don\u2019t spend too much time on this.<\/p>\n

– This is about recognition; people who want to be critical\u2014which is their right\u2014also need to see the context within which these things are occurring over your tenure.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The only other thing I\u2019ll say about it is\u2014just like in sports\u2014being an executive and in organization like this, you\u2019re only as good as what you get done the next day. The board holds me to that standard and I think we all try and hold each other to that standard.<\/p>\n

– What may be your and Mike Graff\u2019s enduring legacy\u00a0 is not what the American men and women do this summer in Tokyo but what they do at the 2024 Olympics in Paris and 2028 Games in Los Angeles. <\/strong>If USAWP is to continue on a path of sustained growth, who are those board members who will step up when Graff steps down?<\/strong><\/p>\n

First,\u00a0 this organization is beyond fortunate to have had Mike\u2019s leadership. His generosity, his passion for the sport and also his ability to make and back tough decisions, which is really important if you want to get things done. This is a guy\u2014Harvard, MIT educated\u2014but he\u2019s a polo guy. He came out in his summers to play at Golden West College to sharpen his game.<\/p>\n

He loves the sport and the people in it; his level of contributions across the board, the things I\u2019ve learned from him as an executive\u2014I\u2019m talking about Mike, not me\u2014continues to go on. He\u2019s in many ways a savant and we couldn\u2019t be more fortunate to have him.<\/p>\n

\"graff_Kilimanjaro-2020\"

Mike Graff at the peak of Mt. Kilimanjaro. Photo Courtesy: USA Water Polo<\/p><\/div>\n

His is a legacy of transformation and success now that he\u2019s leaving water polo\u2014and I hope he\u2019ll still be involved and part of our family even after he moves on from this role.<\/p>\n

We still have a national training center and stadium<\/a> that we have to get built and I know that Mike cares passionately about that project.<\/p>\n

Whatever else I can say about Mike, it\u2019s not enough. He\u2019s been an extraordinary ambassador for our sport and we\u2019ve been incredibly lucky to have him.<\/p>\n

Your other question is about the board and potential leadership. I can\u2019t reveal about succession, it\u2019s something that the board will want to make decisions about\u2014what they\u2019re going to reveal and when. Certainly, at the [2021 General] Assembly<\/a>, more details will be communicated.<\/p>\n

If you look at our board of directors, every single person is a leader, including the athlete representatives. I would say there\u2019s so much leadership on this board that it\u2019s somewhat difficult to wrap your arms around the possibilities.<\/p>\n

They\u2019re incredibly capable\u2014certainly with different skills\u2014we can only be optimistic about the future and the role the board will have. I want to add one other things, which is how positive I am about the Racial Equity and Reform Task Force and the work that they\u2019re doing, and how that informs how the board will continue to evolve, how our staff will continue to evolve and, I hope, how our sport will continue to evolve.<\/p>\n

[USA Water Polo Racial Equality & Reform Task Force Hosts Town Hall Discussions on Zoom<\/em><\/a>]<\/p>\n

We want everyone to have an opportunity to play water polo, no matter who or where they are. There are historic barriers to public swimming pools among communities of color and we want to do away with that in water polo.<\/p>\n

I think there will also be an infusion of more leadership from diverse areas<\/a>. We\u2019ve made a lot of progress, and I think people may underestimate how committed our board of directors is because it comes out in board minutes. You know how committed they are because our board members because are in your community.<\/p>\n

All of our members should have a tremendous degree of confidence in the board of directors and the capability and leadership skills that exist there. How those resources get divided up to accomplish goals will be decided over the next few months.<\/p>\n

– The biggest challenge in the pandemic is the financial hit that USAWP has taken because of a ban on all live events. How has the organization\u2019s approach to fundraising been impacted by the pandemic?<\/strong><\/p>\n

We exceeded our targets for charitable giving this year, which to me underscored the confidence people on a broad base have in our organization and our goals, and the buy-in for those goals.<\/p>\n

[First-Ever Cancellation of Water Polo Junior Olympics Underscores USAWP Financial Challenges<\/em><\/a>]<\/p>\n

We underwent austerity, and that has been an important key to where we are. Our revenues are somewhat scalable; that is, when we do events it costs money to do them and they throw off some money as well. Generally, those are break-even propositions because we want our members to have opportunities\u2014we\u2019re not looking to charge top market rates. We want to be sure to run high-quality events.<\/p>\n

\"SONY

2018 Junior Olympics. Photo Courtesy: Everardo Luna<\/p><\/div>\n

Things are scalable, and that will be one part of this. We\u2019ve put together a balanced budget for the 2021-22 year. It gives our national teams at the Olympics everything they need to be successful. If the pandemic takes a bad turn and the Olympics is cancelled and the Junior Olympics can’t go forward, we\u2019ll have to adapt again.<\/p>\n

Based upon what we know now, we think that Junior Olympics will go forward and that the Olympic Games in Tokyo will go forward. There may be some changes; it may not have a lot of people outside of Japan going there. Or, they may not have live audiences at all – like the NBA – the Games may be played without spectators.<\/p>\n

Those are unanswered questions, but one thing that\u2019s clear to me is that Japan is being stalwart in keeping their word to host the Games. They have every intention of putting the Games on. They may have to make adjustments but I think there will be an Olympic Games.<\/p>\n

In terms of our revenue, getting the Olympic Games, the Junior Olympics and ODP back up in various forms are keys to how we operate and I believe we\u2019re going to be successful.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Continuing Swimming World’s exclusive interview with Christopher Ramsey, CEO of USA Water Polo, the conversation picks up with USAWP’s executive director discussing financial challenges due to the cancellation of a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4875,"featured_media":459849,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"dois","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3,122077,7,12],"tags":[122627,3384,39795,61624,61627,121252,120029,60187,38591,549,86431,60192,61628,3311,2451,72285,15452,60194,102,127013,127048,3613,113359],"class_list":["post-459836","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-americas","category-usa","category-water-polo","tag-2021-tokyo-olympics","tag-adam-krikorian","tag-ashleigh-johnson","tag-bill-smith","tag-chris-ramsey","tag-covid-19","tag-golden-west-college","tag-greenwich-aquatics","tag-greg-mescall","tag-harvard","tag-ian-davidson","tag-michael-randazzo","tag-mike-graff","tag-mit","tag-nba","tag-odp","tag-olympic","tag-olympic-development-program","tag-olympics","tag-panam-games","tag-racial-equity","tag-usa-water-polo","tag-usawp"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\r\nOn The Record with USA Water Polo\u2019s Chris Ramsey: Present, Past, Future (Continued) - 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