HPD (Michael Pederson) Resigns

[flechewounds]

Michael Marx just sent me an email, he wanted to weigh in on this thread, and provide some clarity. These are not my opinions, though they parallel what I've witnessed.

darius
------
The National Coach position began with my tenure as USFA VP. There was a tremendous amount of time and effort put into putting into place and it did stray or develop wings as it progressed over the years. There were a few certainties that most everyone agreed upon:

1) Conflict of interest:

A qualified candidate (as the job description is written) will invariably have a variety of conflicts of interests. This was due to the amount of knowledge they would need to have and apply. We often found that the person with the most conflict of interest was the best choice. This was due to the amount of time and success they had working in their field. The key was to hire someone whose desire to achieve was stronger than any conflict that would arise. Basically, the will to succeed trumps the conflict. I strongly believe that this occurs a majority of the time.

2) Hind sight:

We all at times (after the play or pitch) have something to say such as "that running play has never worked, what were they thinking" or "Why didn't he swing, Cole always throw across the plate on the first pitch". To those of you that see where I am going with this, try making the call prior to the play or pitch and see if you hedge a bit or miss a few now and again. Our national coaches and HPDs have to make these call over and over again and they tend to get most of them correct. I have had to chose for and against my students at times and know what goes through your head. In the end, you must do what is best at that moment. Each decision was criticized and there were consequences for my choices.

3) Accountability:

We are lacking here. Most conflicts involve only a few people and therefore don't seem to have enough steam to be regarded unless the person goes to the USOC which is not in the USFAs best interest as we look like we are not handling our affairs.

4) Follow through:

The USFA is a mostly volunteer organization and therefore (unfortunately) many things slip through the cracks and these non-actions become:
A) an excuse for many as why they have not done their job
B) a cause for many to not be able to do their job.
C) a reason why many throw up their hands with frustration and quit.

5) A strong front:

All too often, when someone stands up to something or pushes for a reasonable change, others stand by and just watch. Although the person may be correct they feels alone in their quest and slowly or quickly their efforts get squashed. I have seen all too many well intentioned people do all they can to only be worn down and eventually decide to do the best they can somewhere else. We need more people to stand and say "I am Sparticus"!

On a more personal note, I have known Mike Pederson for a very long time and in my opinion his motivation for being the HPD were for all the right reasons. What we need from him now is to ask him to offer up his suggestions on what we the USFA need to do to move forward.

In conclusion, I would like offer my sincere thanks to Mike and numerous other members of the USFA who take on positions for our sport.

Respectfully,

Michael Marx

Darius -

Pass along to Mike my (at least) sincere thanks for his comments. His insights are very valuable. My experience has been consistent with what he describes - the almost pathological nature amongst many in our organization to complain incessantly without lifting a finger to do anything about it.

Mike (and Michael, and you, Darius) have "lifted a finger" (ok, maybe the finger of an elephant or two) and we need to salute you for that. It isn't easy (as I learned in my tenure as section chair - occasioned by the same basic motivation).

To those who want to do nothing but whine, I say simply "put up or shut up."

[telkanuru]

Rules of substitution in Olympics are different from all other events.
I believe you can not just substitute for tactical reasons.

.

They are. It's not a substitution, it's a replacement athlete.

[zéphirin]

Your selection process is flawed…..you're not defusing the obvious “conflict of interest”.

I am also saying that Mike should remove himself from consideration because of an obvious conflict of interest…..otherwise he will be subject to these accusations

(emphasis added)


Exactly!

I am really amazed that anyone would insist this not to be the case.

OTOH, what about Ro applying for the position of WE national coach while being a USFA VP elected by the membership (I even voted for him), being selected as WE national coach, and only then resigning from his elected position?

Does this stink or what?

[oiuyt]

Rules of substitution in Olympics are different from all other events.
I believe you can not just substitute for tactical reasons.

They are. It's not a substitution, it's a replacement athlete.

Hopefully something that was a one-time situation and the FIE will be successful in its efforts to change the IOC policy for London.

-B

[Craig]

I beleive that before the bout starts you can (but the subbed out fencer is done and have to leave the village - dumb) sub for tactical reasons. Once the bout starts its only for an injury.

In the Olympics: Before the match starts you set your lineup. The only way a new fencer can come in after the match has started is due to a (verified) injury.

This was the case in Athens as well if I remember correctly.

[pillow]

(emphasis added)


Exactly!

I am really amazed that anyone would insist this not to be the case.

OTOH, what about Ro applying for the position of WE national coach while being a USFA VP elected by the membership (I even voted for him), being selected as WE national coach, and only then resigning from his elected position?

Does this stink or what?

As Walsh said at the close of "Chinatown": "Forget it Jake. It's the USFA."

[Capt. Slo-mo]

From what I know being on the scene was that once the Italian team got their sub in via injury, the FIE came down hard on all of the teams.

Craig: I don't remember the order of the team schedule. Which Italian team, and where were they in relation to the WS team's competition day?

[edew]

I beleive that before the bout starts you can (but the subbed out fencer is done and have to leave the village - dumb) sub for tactical reasons. Once the bout starts its only for an injury.

I think "match" is the correct term. The match is comprised of the 9 bouts. When going from the semi finals to the finals, if Pederson presented the fencers for the finals as Cross, Smart and Willette (or whatever combination), that would be allowed.

Note that James Williams fenced in the gold medal match, subbing for Morehouse (I think). Morehouse (or Rogers?) was not injured AFAIK.

[Capt. Slo-mo]

From what I can tell, the national coaching job is kind of a pain for someone with a top-level student. Instead of supporting your student above all others, you have to be fair - even if that disadvantages your student. That is one reason why it is difficult to get people with top fencers to apply for the job.

From what I can tell, without doing an exhaustive flow-chart analysis, the national coaching position is often the reward for having a top level student(s). And fairness seldom plays any major role, if you believe many of the anecdotal stories we've heard and the things we've witnessed over the years. In reality, it seems like the NC bestowment is more of a driver's seat position where one can make sure the system is set up to meet the needs of the home student first, and then let the rest of the fencers fall in where they may. That's why I've often thought the National Coaching duties like designating schedules and arranging training camps might just as well be handled by someone in the NGB (like an HPD) without the conflict of interest of having to keep the home folks happy.

The presence of a conflict of interest is independent from the execution of impropriety. Therefore, a conflict of interest can be discovered and voluntarily defused before any corruption occurs.

Or, the conflict of interest can be identified and yet, deliberately ignored in the hope that everyone will just be quiet, fence and win medals, with a minimum of boat rocking. I would also posit that in most cases, a conflict of interest is usually the immediate predecessor of an execution of impropriety. It's just human nature.

[piste off]

Craig: I don't remember the order of the team schedule. Which Italian team, and where were they in relation to the WS team's competition day?

Men's epee and Tagliarol, as I recall. He is a much better fencer than actor.

I think he did have to leave the village, and made the sacrifice. Pretty sure that is correct.

R-

[Capt. Slo-mo]

But was this before or after the WS team event? The official Beijing website now wants a password to access the schedule...

[epeemike81]

But was this before or after the WS team event? The official Beijing website now wants a password to access the schedule...

reasonably certain WS was first, so that was after.

-m

[eac]

From what I can tell, the national coaching job is kind of a pain for someone with a top-level student. Instead of supporting your student above all others, you have to be fair - even if that disadvantages your student. That is one reason why it is difficult to get people with top fencers to apply for the job.

From what I can tell, without doing an exhaustive flow-chart analysis, the national coaching position is often the reward for having a top level student(s). And fairness seldom plays any major role, if you believe many of the anecdotal stories we've heard and the things we've witnessed over the years. In reality, it seems like the NC bestowment is more of a driver's seat position where one can make sure the system is set up to meet the needs of the home student first, and then let the rest of the fencers fall in where they may. That's why I've often thought the National Coaching duties like designating schedules and arranging training camps might just as well be handled by someone in the NGB (like an HPD) without the conflict of interest of having to keep the home folks happy.

Or, the conflict of interest can be identified and yet, deliberately ignored in the hope that everyone will just be quiet, fence and win medals, with a minimum of boat rocking. I would also posit that in most cases, a conflict of interest is usually the immediate predecessor of an execution of impropriety. It's just human nature.

Exactly! (to both posts)

If the NC is an upstanding citizen, it's just a useless pain. If the NC isn't, it's corruption. Designating schedules, and pretty much every NC task other than physically being on the strip during FIE team events, *is* better handled by someone other than a single designated NC.

Here's what I think should happen. I think we should take an upstanding citizen with no vested interest in the matter (and hopefully no preexisting opinions about schedules, or preexisting personal issues with any of the coaches, but that might be very difficult), and general fencing familiarity but not necessarily any coaching expertise, and designate him the decider. Then, for each weapon separately, take the coaches of the top N fencers on the rolling standings. (N=8, say, or 12) Have the coaches scream at each other for a good long while until they've said everything they could say. Have the upstanding citizen ask the coaches any questions he can think of.

Then, have the upstanding citizen decider go away and think about all the issues the coaches raised, and come out with a decision. I think the current set of decisions was made without even thinking about any important issues, and in some cases was made by people with vested interests or prejudices, and this would fix that.

You might say that it's impossible to find an upstanding citizen decider, and you might be right, but I think it's not impossible. Kurt, for instance, might do well in that capacity, if he had time, especially since he can take into account other big-picture issues like the demands of potential sponsors, and tell the coaches that those are some constraints they have to argue within. He also seems unlikely to have particular preexisting ideological or political biases between coaches.

[MyrddinsPrecint]

Didn't his decision at the Olympics prove that he can put aside his personal preferences and make an unbiased decision?



I'm hearing all the sour grapes already. That's apparent by the comments on this thread.



Could that be the reason there's been a problem filling the position?

Look: I don't know the man. He might or might not be biased, he may or may not be able to control his behavior to avoid acting out of bias. I also don't know a whole lot about who has or has not applied, and the culture around the position (or women's foil) that would encourage or prevent people from applying.

But you wrote a fairly long post extolling characteristics that no one debated, and aren't particularly relevant.

If you want to write a long post talking about the situations you've seen him avoid biased actions, navigate difficult political waters, and schedule things..... that might be a more useful application of your personal knowledge : ).

Here's what I think should happen. I think we should take an upstanding citizen with no vested interest in the matter (and hopefully no preexisting opinions about schedules, or preexisting personal issues with any of the coaches, but that might be very difficult), and general fencing familiarity but not necessarily any coaching expertise, and designate him the decider.

Ooh! I'd do it!!

... Only, I'd probably be biased against foil. Sorry.

[MdA]

.......
A qualified candidate (as the job description is written) will invariably have a variety of conflicts of interests..... Basically, the will to succeed trumps the conflict......

The USFA is a mostly volunteer organization and therefore (unfortunately) many things slip through the cracks......

......I have known Mike Pederson for a very long time and in my opinion his motivation for being the HPD were for all the right reasons. What we need from him now is to ask him to offer up his suggestions on what we the USFA need to do to move forward.
........
Michael Marx

Thanks for posting Michael's comments. He makes some very important and valuable points.

The conflicts he foresaw are different than the ones mentioned earlier in this thread.

Things that slip through the cracks are not the same as unprofessional behavior.

I agree that it is important that Mike Pederson help us move forward with suggestions. I don't believe he can do that effectively, if he gets right back into the political mix as a candidate for NC.

I know at least three qualified candidates for WF national coach. But, they will not submit resumes or do interviews. They USFA will need to pursue them and provide the proper incentives. I believe that Pederson's application will decrease the number of qualified applicants.

Coaches simply do not believe they will get a fare shake.

[flechewounds]

I know at least three qualified candidates for WF national coach. But, they will not submit resumes or do interviews. They USFA will need to pursue them and provide the proper incentives. I believe that Pederson's application will decrease the number of qualified applicants.

Coaches simply do not believe they will get a fare shake.

It is important to note that the application process has been open for a long time. There are at least a couple of other very qualified candidates already in the pipeline. If MdA's three are not among them, it is important to note that they did not apply during such process - which was well before the news about Mike's changes were open and final (and even before the rumors that may have existed became known).

[Inquartata]

designate him the decider.

I think you need a different title. No one is going to want the job when the comparisons to George Bush are so inevitable.

[MyrddinsPrecint]

I think you need a different title. No one is going to want the job when the comparisons to George Bush are so inevitable.

Hey, there's a good reason for picking me. The only Bush family member I have much of anything in common with is Barbara.....

[Inquartata]

Because of your advanced age and white hair?

[MyrddinsPrecint]

Because of your advanced age and white hair?

We both used to live on the same street. Not at the same time, obviously.