COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – USA Boxing has announced its new 10-member Board of Directors, one of the critical steps in the organization's ongoing governance reform. The new Board met for the first time at the USA Boxing General Membership Meeting, October 19-21 in Pittsburgh, Pa.
The new USA Boxing Board of Directors includes: Jim Beasley (Hutchinson, Kan.); Robert Blaha (Colorado Springs, Colo.); Angel Bovee (White Plains, N.Y.); Thomas Coulter (Syracuse, N.Y.); Kevin Franklin (McDonough, Ga.); Andy Geiger (Port Angeles, Wash.); Boyd Melson (Fort Carson, Colo.); Alan Rothenberg (Los Angeles, Calif.); David Swavey (Wylie, Texas) and Dr. Thomas Virgets (Annapolis, Md.). A brief biography of each USA Boxing Board Member is provided at the end of this release.
The composition of the new USA Boxing Board of Directors is as follows:
· Three independent directors - Robert Blaha, Andy Geiger, Alan Rothenberg
· One coach director - Thomas Coulter
· One referee/officials director - Kevin Franklin
· Two grassroots directors - Dr. Thomas Virgets, David Swavey
· One affiliated organization director - Jim Beasley
· Two athlete directors - Angel Bovee and Boyd Melson
The Chair of the new USA Boxing Board of Directors will be selected among the new Board members during the upcoming General Membership Meeting.
Former USOC President Bill Martin served as chair and U.S. Olympic Committee representative for the five-person USA Boxing Nominating and Governance Committee, which met Oct. 8 to choose the new Board members. Martin is the Director of Athletics for the University of Michigan.
"This represents a new era for the sport of amateur boxing in the United States," said Martin, who served as Acting President for the USOC from February 2003-June 2004 and led the governance restructuring of the USOC. "The Nominating and Governance Committee was diligent in its approach to selecting the new USA Boxing Board members. The new Board is comprised of individuals that are resolute in their commitment to amateur boxing and possess the business acumen needed to affect change. We are anxious to see the results of their work."
Along with Martin, the Nominating and Governance Committee included USA Boxing Foundation member John Stavros (Woodstown, N.J.); athlete representative Albert Guardado (Kansas City, Mo.); Coaches and Technical Committee representative Joseph Letellier (Groton, Conn.); and Local Boxing Committee/Group member representative Richard Hoffman (Coronado, Calif.).
USA Boxing has been on probation by the U.S. Olympic Committee since November 2002 and was asked to undergo extensive governance reform on April 25, 2006. That governance reform called for the adoption of new bylaws granting greater staff autonomy in day-to-day operations and the establishment of a new Board of Directors, which would be the sole governing authority for the organization. USA Boxing's Board of Governors, in its last official act as a governing entity for USA Boxing, voted to relinquish responsibility as an authoritative board of USA Boxing on August 19, setting in motion the creation of the new 10-member Board.
"We want to thank the previous USA Boxing Board of Directors as well as the Board of Governors for taking the necessary steps in allowing these changes to take place," said Steve Roush, USOC Chief of Sport Performance. "We believe their work as well as the work of the new Board will allow the organization to achieve greater organizational stability and continuity in the future. The organization needs to move forward with preparing its boxers for the challenges that lie ahead in Beijing and to ensure that the athletes' best interests are being protected not only with respect to training and competitions, but also in the areas of resources and support."
USA Boxing Board of Directors
James (Jim) Beasley (Affiliated Organization Director/Hutchinson, Kan.)
Beasley began his career in the sport in 1955 as a boxer and he has been important contributor to amateur boxing ever since. He is currently the National Golden Gloves Executive Director, a position he's held for the past eight years. He was also the Operations Director for the Hutchinson (Kan.) News Publishing Company for 34 years.
Robert Blaha (Independent Director/Colorado Springs, Colo.)
Blaha currently serves as the President of Human Capital Associates, a management consulting company in Colorado Springs and also serves as the Vice Chairman of Integrity Bank & Trust. During his career, Blaha has held senior management positions with Ford Motor Company, Monsanto Company, Engelhard Corporation and Asea Brown Boveri.
Thomas Coulter (Coach Director/Syracuse, N.Y.)
Coulter has been affiliated with amateur boxing since 1951 as a boxer, coach and administrator. He served as the 1988 U.S. Olympic Team coach for boxing, coached the 1982 Goodwill Games team and was a consultant to the 1996 U.S. Olympic Boxing Team. Coulter won 10 varsity letter awards in track, cross country and boxing from Syracuse University and was an NCAA All-American in cross country.
Andy Geiger (Independent Director/Port Angeles, Wash.)
Geiger previously served as the Director of Athletics for The Ohio State University from 1994-2005 where he oversaw a program with 36 sports, nearly 1,000 student-athletes and an annual operating budget that exceeded $85 million. His collegiate athletic administration experience dates back to 1964 when he served as the Assistant Director of Athletics for his alma mater, Syracuse University. Geiger was also a member of the 1959 Pan American Games Team in rowing.
Kevin Franklin (Referee-Officials Director/McDonough, Ga.)
Franklin currently serves as Chief of Officials for USA Boxing and has been a referee/judge in the organization since 1994. He has worked seven national championships as an official and was a boxer in the U.S. Marine Corps. Franklin also works in the Network Operations Control Center at AT&T.
David Swavey (Grassroots Director/Wylie, Texas)
Swavey is a Lieutenant in the Garland (Texas) Police Department. In addition to his police duties, Swavey founded and currently directs the Guns N' Hoses Foundation, which was established to provide benevolent funds to police and firefighters as well as youth programs in 16 surrounding counties. He also manages the Garland Police Boxing Program for 150 at-risk youth.
Alan Rothenberg (Independent Director/Los Angeles, Calif.)
Rothenberg is the Founder and Chairman of the 1st Century Bank and is also Chairman of Premier Partnerships, a sports and entertainment marketing and consulting firm. An attorney for the past 36 years, Rothenberg now serves as a commercial arbitrator and mediator. He has been a great ambassador to the sport of soccer and has served as Chairman of the Board for the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup, Chairman and CEO of the 1994 World Cup Organizing Committee and President of the United States Soccer Federation. He is also the founder and member of the Board of Governors of Major League Soccer, which began operation in 1996. He also was a member of the NBA Board of Governors from 1971-79 and from 1982-90.
Dr. Thomas Virgets (Grassroots Director/Annapolis, Md.)
Dr. Virgets is currently the Deputy Physical Education Officer with the U.S. Naval Academy. A former athletic director at Central Florida Community College, Virgets has been active with USA Boxing since the early 1980s when he began as boxing coach at the Virginia Military Institute. He has served on USA Boxing's International, Appeals and Personnel Committees since 2005.
