SUPPLEMENT NO. 3
DIII Mgmt Council 07/02
REPORT OF THE
NCAA OLYMPIC SPORTS LIAISON COMMITTEE
1.
ACTION
ITEM.
Student-Athlete
on a U.S. National Team Competing in Prize Money Events.
a. Recommendation. Sponsor legislation to permit NCAA
student-athletes on the U.S. Olympic team and/or National team to compete in
tournaments or events in which prize money is awarded, provided the NCAA
student-athlete does not accept any portion of the prize money or assign his or
her portion to a third party. The
OSLC also recommends that the Divisions I, II and III Management Councils
Administrative Review Subcommittees grant any waivers of those student-athletes
affected by the restrictions while the recommendations works through the governance
and legislative processes.
b. Rationale. Under current legislation, it is not
permissible for student-athletes to compete as members of a U.S. national team
in a prize money event without jeopardizing their amateur status, regardless of
whether they waive their right to accept any prize money that may be won from
the team's performance. The OSLC
noted that such legislation would allow student-athletes to gain the beneficial
experience of competing in such elite level events without damaging their
amateur status provided they waive all right to receive prize money awarded
based on the team's participation or performance. The committee forwarded the issue to the Division I
Subcommittee on Amateurism and Agents for its input since such violations
affect a student-athlete’s amateur status.
2. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS.
a. Emerging
Sports/Gender Equity Update. The
Olympic Sports Liaison Committee (OSLC) received a report from staff related to
the latest developments for emerging sports. Women's rugby was recently approved by the Division I
membership and legislation is pending in Divisions II and III. Bowling, which was approved as an emerging
sport in 1999, is close to achieving the goal of having the 40 NCAA programs necessary
for an NCAA Championship.
b. Foreign
Student-Athlete Participation Rates. Staff provided the OSLC with an update
related to the participation rates for student-athletes in NCAA sports. The OSLC discussed its role with
respect to foreign Olympic student-athletes and decided to revisit its role and
duties outlined in Bylaw 21.1.6.2 at its November meeting.
c. Continued
Discussion of NCAA Sports Sponsorship. The OSLC continued its discussion of
the revenue-distribution plan developed by the committee's former chair, as
well as other initiatives that address the elimination of Olympic sport programs. The OSLC decided to further study Plan
C of the revenue-distribution plan.
Specifically, the OSLC requested that NCAA staff update Plan C with
current sport-sponsorship levels and the most recent revenue-distribution
information. The committee plans
to forward its recommendation to the Management Council next spring. OSLC members also agreed to participate
in roundtable discussions at the National Association of Collegiate Directors
of Athletics and the Title IX seminar at the United States Olympic Committee.
d. Meeting with
National Governing Bodies.
(1) USA Equestrian. The OSLC met with representatives from
USA Equestrian to discuss equestrian's progress as an emerging sport. USA Equestrian requested that legislation
be proposed to provide an exception to the outside competition rules for equestrian
student-athletes. The OSLC
suggested that NCAA institutions currently offering equestrian sponsor such
legislation. USA Equestrian is
working to encourage member institutions to offer equestrian so that the
sponsorship requirements for a national championship can be satisfied.
(2) USA Soccer. The OSLC met with a representative from
USA Soccer to discuss the problems that arose with USA Soccer's development program. The OSLC directed USA Soccer to submit
any revised versions of that program to the NCAA membership services staff for
review, and to contact the OSLC if USA Soccer determines a long-term
legislative solution is needed.
(3) USA Gymnastics. The OSLC met with a representative of
USA Gymnastics to discuss the elimination of men's and women's gymnastics
programs by NCAA institutions. It
was noted that in the past few weeks, the University of Vermont, the University
of California at Santa Barbara, the University of Massachusetts and the University
of Minnesota have eliminated their men's and/or women's gymnastics programs. USA Gymnastics urged the NCAA to look
at the participation at the club level rather than the high-school level when
evaluating the vitality of those two sports. Currently, only 18 Division I institutions continue to
sponsor men's gymnastics. USA
Gymnastics expressed the frustration it and other national governing bodies are
experiencing in fighting the elimination of Olympic sport programs, while
coaches and facilities in revenue sports continue to increase. USA Gymnastics sought guidance from the
OSLC as to how the NCAA can assist national governing bodies in addressing this
issue. The OSLC shared the current
OSLC initiatives aimed at addressing the elimination of Olympic sport programs.
(4) USA Tennis. The OSLC met with a representative of
USA Tennis. During that meeting, a
memo was distributed outlining USA Tennis’ suggested changes to current NCAA
bylaws. In response, the OSLC
referred the issue regarding the redistribution of the permissible 144-practice
days to the Division I Playing and Practice Seasons Subcommittee. NCAA staff agreed to provide additional
information responsive to USA Tennis' question regarding the application of the
local sports-club exception.
The
OSLC further recommends that the NCAA Division I Championships/Competition
Cabinet Playing and Practice Seasons Subcommittee consider sponsoring legislation
redistributing the 144-day practice season for men's and women’s tennis
programs so that institutions could use the days in any manner during the fall
season, provided student-athletes were provided with one day off per week. USA Tennis requests that institutions
be allowed to redistribute the 144-practice days intermingled with the
out-of-season days. Such a proposal
would not require any additional practice dates, but simply provides more
autonomy for coaches to determine the days on which team practice is needed.
(5) USA
Track and Field. The
OSLC met with representatives from USA Track and Field. Those individuals provided the OSLC
with a memorandum outlining current issues involving or affecting NCAA track
and field student-athletes and coaches.
The OSLC considered and discussed each issue and, ultimately, decided to
refer USA Track and Field's concern regarding the decrease in the number of
women NCAA track and field coaches to the Committee on Women's Athletics for
review. To address USA Track and
Field's question regarding the acceptance of prize money and training grants,
the NCAA staff agreed to provide USA Track and Field with an update related to
the recent changes in the three divisions' amateurism regulations. Finally, the OSLC agreed to discuss as
an agenda item at its November meeting the possibility of creating an exception
to the current restriction on nongraduates practicing with a member
institution's current student-athletes and coaches.
e. USA
Wrestling/Women's Freestyle Wrestling/Emerging Sport. The NCAA Olympic Sports Liaison Committee
(OSLC) forwarded to the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics a recommendation
from USA Wrestling requesting sponsorship of legislation designating women’s
freestyle wrestling as an emerging sport.
Women's
freestyle wrestling was recently added as an Olympic sport and is one of the
fastest growing sports for young female athletes. USA Wrestling seeks legislation adding this sport to the
NCAA's list of emerging sports set forth in NCAA Bylaw 20.02.5.
The
OSLC also referred to the Committee on Women’s Athletics, USA Wrestling's request
that the NCAA issue a formal statement as to the increased number of member institutions
eliminating men's Olympic sport programs as it relates to Title IX. As to the request for a statement on
Title IX and the elimination of men's Olympic sports, traditionally, the
Committee on Women's Athletics has been the entity that states the Association's
viewpoint as to Title IX.
Accordingly, the OSLC refers USA Wrestling's request to that committee
for consideration.
Staff Liaisons: Douglas
Archie, Bridget Niland
The
National Collegiate Athletic Association
July 2, 200 DA