Mike Unger, USA Swimming Assistant Executive Director
Mike Unger was a part of USA Swimming’s livestream presentation today to announce which of the top three cities would host the 2016 US Olympic Swimming Trials. Unger has over 20 years in the sport and this is his sixth Olympic Trials. As the Assistant Executive Director at USA Swimming, his responsibilies are far-reaching. It is perhaps more accurate to describe Unger as USA swimming’s chief operating officer. For coaches and swimmers nationwide, Unger has been the go-to for service and support when needed. His duties often put him on the road and on deck at swimming competitions allover the world. Unger took a few moments with SwimSwam following the livestream to answer questions.
1. How close was this race between the final three? Was it unanimous, or a split decision?
UNGER: It was a unanimous decision from the USA Swimming Board of Directors. The selection committee, however, debated the cities for months. The committee had three goals:
1. We wanted the ability to run a technically flawless event.
2. We wanted to run a great show. When I say “show” I mean the light show, music, the aquazone experience. We want to meet spectators’ expectations.
(EDITOR’SNOTE: Sports Business Journal has nominated the 2012 US Olympic Swimming Trials as the “2012 Sports Event of the Year”. Among the nominees; Stanley Cup and Ryder Cup.)
3. We wanted a financially successful event for the host city and USA Swimming. Looking deeper, USA Swimming wanted a partnership venture with the host city. I’ve said this before, but 1 + 1 = 3. In other words, it takes a great partner to be successful when hosting the Olympic Trials.
2. How heavily did the presence of luxury suites and a “club level” play into the ratings of the bids for St. Louis and San Antonio versus Omaha?
UNGER: The ability to have luxury suites was important. Some cities had limitations, but all three cities had suites and ability to service in that area.
3. What do your schematics show the official Trials capacity to be for the pool set up in 2016 for the winning city?
UGNER: Omaha will be in the 14.5k range. To answer your question, each city had their own schematic. San Antonio and St. Louis could seat 18 to 25 to 60k. San Antonio and St. Louis had great setups, but Omaha had the best setup, and our decision came down to venue setup…what would be best for the athletes and the coaches.
4. Now that a winner has been selected, what’s the next stop in the process? Is there some down time before preparations really get ramped up again, or is it non-stop?
UNGER: USA Swimming will work jointly with Omaha on PR over the next two weeks. After that, the process will slow down a little, but Trials is always top of mind. The planning never stops. USA Swimming is always thinking of ways to make Olympic Trials better. About two years out, 2014, we have Olympic Trials time standards to decide. At that point, the work picks up and doesn’t stop.
5. Can you rank the top three cities in order?
UNGER: Yes, of couse. Omaha was number one. San Antonio and St. Louis were second.
6. How heavily was the committee’s decision influenced by the opinions of the swimming fan-base?
UGNER: USA Swimming took into consideration the past Olympic Trials. Overall spectator experience feedback was a big factor. We also spoke to athletes and coaches a lot. Their opinions mattered. All had great things to say about Omaha, but many liked the idea of the event going to another host city… What it came down to was the 75 criteria we used to grade each bid city. We considered everything from airports to restaurants to the warmdown pool to hospitality to the quality of the organizing committee. That was the core of how we decided. We simply did our homework.
Below is USA Swimming’s unedited press release:
USA Swimming, in collaboration with the United States Olympic Committee, announced today that Omaha, Neb., has been selected as the host city for the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Swimming.
The 2016 Olympic Trials ranks as the biggest swimming event in the country and will select the 2016 U.S. Olympic Swim Team, which will represent Team USA in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The competition will take place at the CenturyLink Center Omaha and that dates will soon become available on www.usaswimming.org/trials.
For the first time, the host city selection was announced via a live webcast from the USA Swimming Board of Directors Meeting in Colorado Springs, Colo. The USA Swimming Board approved the selection of Omaha as host city today prior to the live announcement.
“We are thrilled to bring Olympic Trials back to Omaha in 2016,” said Chuck Wielgus, USA Swimming executive director. “The Olympic Trials is a spectacular event, offering a great experience for our athletes, fans, families and coaches. Trials is our sport’s signature event and in announcing Omaha as the 2016 host city today, we are lighting the fuse for literally hundreds of thousands of young swimmers who will be setting their sights on qualifying to participate in the greatest swimming event in the country.”
The 2016 bid city evaluation period opened in January 2013 and included site visits to six finalist locations. An internal evaluation team from USA Swimming, along with a member of the USA Swimming board, visited each location and selected finalists from the group. Three finalist cities were announced at the end of March and included Omaha, Nebraska, St. Louis, Missouri and San Antonio, Texas.
In addition to reviewing the bids and making site visits, this team asked follow-up questions of each city and evaluated all information and responses before ultimately making a recommendation to Wielgus, the USA Swimming Board of Directors and the USOC.
“On behalf of the Omaha Sports Commission, the citizens and corporations of Omaha, I wish to thank USA Swimming and the USOC for having the confidence in our abilities to deliver the goods for a third consecutive Trials,” said Harold Cliff, president of the Omaha Sports Commission. We are ecstatic for the opportunity to host the world’s best swimmers in their quest to represent the USA in Rio 2016.”
Two temporary 50-meter pools for Trials will be installed by Myrtha Pools in the CentruryLink Center Omaha, the state-of-the-art, 17,000-seat sports and entertainment venue in downtown Omaha. The convention center will once again serve as the home for the award-winning, 100,000 square-foot USA Swimming Aqua Zone, a sponsor and fan experience area.
USA Swimming is coming off a year in which it saw its most successful Trials event in history. The 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Swimming, held in Omaha, Neb., saw over 164,000 fans in attendance and the eight days of competition were broadcast LIVE on NBC television every night.
The 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Swimming was also nominated in the category of “Sports Event of the Year” for the illustrious Sports Business Awards. Olympic Trials is in the company of three other major sporting events, including the Ryder Cup, the Stanley Cup Finals and the United States Grand Prix. The winner will be announced next month.
Since 2004, USA Swimming has consistently expanded the reach of the Olympic Trials. Attendance numbers have soared; and the Aqua Zone, a fan and sponsor experience area, has grown to bring swimming to a wider audience.
The U.S. Olympic Team Trials for all sports is a collaborative, three-way partnership between the U.S. Olympic Committee, the National Governing Bodies and the local organizing committee.
About USA Swimming
As the National Governing Body for the sport of swimming in the United States, USA Swimming is a 300,000-member service organization that promotes the culture of swimming by creating opportunities for swimmers and coaches of all backgrounds to participate and advance in the sport through clubs, events and education. Our membership is comprised of swimmers from the age group level to the Olympic Team, as well as coaches and volunteers. USA Swimming is responsible for selecting and training teams for international competition including the Olympic Games, and strives to serve the sport through its core objectives: Build the base, Promote the sport, Achieve competitive success. For more information, visit www.usaswimming.org.
About The Omaha Sports Commission
Omaha’s most prominent civic leaders joined forces during the fall of 2003 to form the Omaha Sports Commission. The OSC was originally created as a committee to MECA but in spring of 2004 it became a stand alone 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization. The vision of the OSC is to make Omaha the leading amateur sports community in America, and the mission is to create a positive economic impact for Omaha and the region through attracting, hosting and supporting amateur sporting events. The Commission is chaired by Mr. Harley Schrager, longtime prominent Omaha businessman along with 30 + active board members. Daily operations of the OSC are overseen by President, Harold Cliff who also served as the Chief Operating Officer for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials — Swimming. The OSC is excited for the future and looks forward to placing a greater focus on community activities and leadership in 2009. Emphasis will also be directed toward hosting a multitude of sporting events in addition to bidding for larger NCAA and National Sporting events.
I’m a little disappointed San Antonio didn’t get the bid. Omaha was great in 2008 and 2012 but San Antonio puts on incredible events every year and the Alamo Dome has plenty of hotels nearby. I just hope that the trials don’t over lap with the College World Series again. that was my only minor issue with Omaha.
Eric – as noted in the announcement post we did, the CWS is not expected to overlap in 2016.
The CWS does overlap the first four days in 2016. Downtown hotel rooms are sold out currently for both events. The hotels will probably release more but there is probably not enough capacity downtown to accommodate 15,000 swim fans and countless other CWS fans.
Hmmm…the fix was in? Did you attend the trials in ’08 or ’12? I did, both times Omaha executes this event at a world class level. Officials and swimmers rave about the facilities, atmosphere and their treatment. Every out-of-town guest I talked to had nothing but glowing things to say. You can tear Omaha down all you want, but it sounds like sour grapes. Even without the star power of Michael Phelps, Omaha will still put on an incredible event and attendance will be as strong or stronger in ’16. Obviously the people most in tune with what makes this event successful don’t quite share your view regarding hotels, air fare, size of the venue and especially your perceived lack… Read more »
St. Louis and San Antonio in second? What a joke why did they even make a big deal about this and waste time if they knew it was going to be omaha
Swim swam said Omaha was invited to bid just to be nice… Really?
Did you even attend?
The fix was in. Not enough close hotel rooms, high priced airfare, smaller venue, and no other attractions in this small town.