USA Ultimate

USA Ultimate Board of Directors Convenes in Boulder

Boulder, Colo. (June 23, 2010)--Last weekend, the USA Ultimate Board of Directors conducted its biannual meeting in Boulder, Colo., gathering to discuss a variety of subjects related to the National Governing Body’s long-term strategic plan and explore future initiatives designed to advance and grow the sport of Ultimate in the United States.

 

Throughout the two-day meeting, Board members and staff addressed several topics and made significant progress towards implementing some exciting new programs, ideas and events – many of which will be formally announced in greater detail in the coming months.

 

Many of these initiatives are in the early planning stages, and details will become available throughout the remainder of the year, however USA Ultimate wanted to inform the Ultimate community about some of the exciting new endeavors on the horizon that have the full support of the Board. As USA Ultimate makes further progress on these items, we will continue to provide updates.

 

Topics discussed included:

 

In 2011, a significant portion of resources will be allocated to youth programs designed to introduce kids to the sport of Ultimate and teach them how to play the game – a major priority for USA Ultimate. To support these goals, USA Ultimate is planning to partner with Ultimate leagues and associations around the country to implement a “Learn to Play” program which was successfully piloted this year. Also in 2011, resources will be earmarked towards introducing the sport of Ultimate to existing youth sport organizations such as local community centers, YMCAs, school systems, and multi-sport youth camps. Other program components that will continue to establish USA Ultimate as the educational leader in youth Ultimate include summer camp programs, enhanced and expanded educational and outreach materials, and expansion of high school, middle school and youth club initiatives.

 

USA Ultimate reconfirmed its commitment to providing its members with developmental and competitive playing opportunities. To better service its largest member base, USA Ultimate will introduce a fall calendar of events for college teams, which will act as a pre-season and focus on local competitive playing opportunities and team and athlete development.

 

USA Ultimate’s Club Restructuring Task Force, comprised of players and league representatives from across the U.S., also submitted an outline of strategies to enhance competition in the Club division. More work is currently underway within the task force which will soon lead to a more structured regular season and tiered competitive opportunities that will serve as a lead-up to the championship series.  

 

Several other enhancements were also discussed and players and teams at the local, league  and regional levels can expect  more meaningful and fun competitive opportunities as the task force completes its work over the remainder of the year. The goal is to create more opportunities  to serve USA Ultimate’s diverse groups.

 

One of the most exciting developments to come out of the meeting was the approval for USA Ultimate to develop a new high-profile international event that will welcome the worldwide Ultimate community  to the U.S. to experience and celebrate “character, community and competition.”

 

Dr. Tom Crawford, CEO of USA Ultimate explained: “We are developing an event that will truly showcase our sport and our amazing athletes, and that is much more than just a competition. This will be an awesome international competition, combined with a festival and convention all wrapped up together.”   

 

The vision of the U.S. Open Ultimate Championships is to attract top teams and athletes from around the globe for world-class competition. And while fans and enthusiasts will be on hand to watch Ultimate played at its highest level across several divisions, the Ultimate community will be able to take advantage of a wide variety of educational opportunities, clinics, and participate/join in committee meetings and community building experiences. Examples may include coaching and observer training and development, league best practices, sport science, tactics and strategy, strength and conditioning, and much more. Top experts from around the globe will be invited to participate and share their expertise and experience. In conjunction with these learning opportunities, world-class competition will then ensue for the enjoyment of the Ultimate community, with activities and vacation-themed experiences for the entire family.  

 

 Some of the other topics that were discussed  included USA Ultimate’s international strategy; marketing and communication plans; conduct and alcohol policies; governance; observer program; and Spirit of the Game™. The board reiterated its strong support for continuing to invest resources and new strategies in the development of observers at multiple levels.  Minutes from the June Board meeting will be published for members on www.usaultimate.org in the coming weeks.