April 2015 Track and Field Writers of President’s Remarks America Abramson Award Is Modernized (Founded June 7, 1973) TAFWA has decided to rename its writing award for the late Jim PRESIDENT Jack Pfeifer, 6129 N. Dunaway, who passed away in Austin, Tex., last month at the age of Lovely St., Portland, OR 97203. Office/home: 917- 87. The award was initially named in honor of the renowned Jesse 579-5392. Email: [email protected] Abramson 35 years ago. The award will now be known as the James O. Dunaway Memorial Award and will be presented for the first VICE PRESIDENT Doug Binder. Email: [email protected]. Phone: 503-913-4191. TREASURER Contents Tom Casacky, P.O. Box 4288, Napa, CA 94558. Phone: 818-321-3234. P. 4 TAFWA Awards for 2015 Email: [email protected] P. 5 Remembering Jim Dunaway SECRETARY/ P. 13 Limbo for Non-Revenue-Generating Collegiate Sports? AWARDS CHAIR P. 17 Stan Saplin Award Winners Announced: TAFWA Members Derek Don Kopriva, 5327 New- port Drive, Lisle IL 60532. Alvez and George Kochman Home: 630-960-3049. P. 19 University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Drops Men’s Track & Field Cell: 630-712-2710. Email: donkopriva777@ P. 22 Golden Track Reunion in San Diego aol.com P. 24 Flotrack becomes FloSports, Inc. NEWSLETTER EDITOR P. 25 UO Faculty Eye Athletics Budget Tax to Help Fund Academics Kim Spir, University of P. 27 Credential Applications Available Online for Select USATF Portland, 5000 N. Willamette Blvd., Championship Series Events and IAAF Events Portland, OR 97203. P. 28 USTFCCCA Announces Its National Athlete and Coaches of the Work: 503-943-7314. Email: kim.spir@gmail. Year Awards com P. 30 Boston as an Olympic Site in 2024? FAST P. 35 The Kent Plan by TAFWA Member Lane C. Dowell Dave Johnson. Email: P. 39 #WeAreUSATF - Well, Act Like It [email protected] Phone: 215-898-6145. P. 43 TrackTown USA Announces Hosts “One Year Out” Event for the 2016 IAAF World Championships in Portland, Oregon. USATF WEBMASTER Michael McLaughlin. Announces that Portland Will Host the 2016 UATF National Indoor Email: supamac@comcast. Championships net. Phone: 815-529- 8454. P. 46 Partial Fixtures List time under its new name this spring in Eugene. Although I myself have been writing about track and field for some 50 years, I never met Abramson, who spent his entire 44-year newspaper career at the New York Herald- Tribune, until its closing in 1966. A graduate of Stuyves- ant High School in Manhat- tan, Abramson covered 11 Olympic Games, from 1928 to 1976, and helped found the New York Track Writers As- sociation. He died of cancer in 1979 at age 75. Dunaway, a longtime member of both the New York Track Writers and TAFWA, reported on 14 Olympics himself, from 1956 to 2008, meaning that, fittingly, he and Abramson were colleagues for six of those. I’m sure they shared many an IC4A, Millrose Games, Heps and Penn Relays as well dur- ing Jim’s long career on the East Coast. Thus, the baton is passed. We share many more sentiments from members about Jim in this issue starting on page five. Awards, Dues, Annual One month remains to nominate yourself or a colleague for this year’s remaining TAFWA Awards. Details follow on page four of this month’s newsletter. We have decided to allow a one-month grace period for those of you who have not paid your 2015 dues of $30. They were due March 31, but we are extending that to May 1. After that date, if you have not paid your dues, you will no longer be able to receive the TAFWA Newsletter - Page 2 - April 2015 Newsletter. Dues are payable by check to TAFWA c/o our treasurer, Tom Casacky, or by Paypal. You also need to get your membership current to receive a copy of this year’s FAST An- nual. Editor Casacky hopes to have it ready by the end of the month; stay tuned. Meanwhile, the outdoor season is in full swing. We hope to catch up with many of you at the upcoming, 121st Penn Relays, only 35 of which we have attended. Other Awards, Get-Togethers With four of our annual awards now in the books, nominations remain open for our remaining honors, including writing, blogging, photography and video. Deadline is early May. These will be presented on Friday morning, June 12, on the University of Oregon campus. Our annual Breakfast is no longer at the Eugene Hilton. We will also have a Brunch Social on the Sunday morning of USATF Nationals at the home of Tom and Janet Heinonen in Eugene. TAFWA Newsletter - Page 3 - April 2015 2015 TAFWA Awards Information Please note deadlines Recognizing excellence in track & field journalism, announcing, photography, film & video, blogging and books in 2015 as well as ongoing cooperation with the media. General information: These awards will be presented in June 2015 for work in 2014 unless otherwise noted. Self-nominations are allowed. Please include nominee’s name, address, e-mail address and phone. James O. Dunaway Memorial Award - For excellence in track and field journalism Award Chair: Jack Pfeifer ([email protected]). Nomination Deadline: Friday, May 8, 2015. Sam Skinner Memorial Award - For ongoing cooperation with the press Award Chair: Don Kopriva ([email protected]), Nomination Deadline: Friday, May 8, 2015. Note: Submit name of nominee and a brief narrative. Announcing Awards - For excellence in track and field announcing: Scott Davis Memorial Award - presented to a current announcer Pinkie Sober Award: presented to a retired announcer or posthumously Award Chair: Dave Johnson ([email protected]). Nomination Deadline: Friday, May 8, 2015. Rich Clarkson Photography Award - For excellence in track and field/cross country/road racing still photography Award Chair: Jack Pfeifer ([email protected]). Nomination Deadline: Friday, May 8, 2015. Note: Submit an electronic portfolio. Adam Jacobs Blogging Award - For excellence in online personal writing on track and field, cross country or road racing in 2014. Award Chair: Parker Morse ([email protected]). Nomination Deadline: Friday, May 8, 2015. TAFWA Videography Award - For excellence in online video journalism. Award Chair: Saudia Mitchell ([email protected]) Nomination Deadline: Friday, May 8, 2015. TAFWA Newsletter - Page 4 - April 2015 “At Texas Relays, Jim Dunaway Is Not Forgotten.” Cedric Golden. | Austin American-Statesman, March 29, 2015. <<The venture was Home- town Features, an idea concocted by a young adver- tising executive in Chicago back in 1956. The concocter was Jim Du- naway, a kid who wanted to go places. The 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, for starters. One idea hatched in Chicago nearly 60 years ago turned into a lifelong odyssey that transformed an idea man into one of the most well- respected track and field writers in the sport’s his- tory.>> <<Our friend died peacefully two weeks ago at age 87. I counted track and field’s most lovable press box curmud- geon as a pal and role model of sorts because of the respect he commanded whenever he walked into a stadium, from a high school meet all the way up to the Summer Olympics, which credentialed him 14 consecutive times. The National Track and Field Hall of Famer was remembered by friends and family, including his beloved son David, who gathered for a memorial service at the AT&T Hotel and Conference Center on Saturday to swap stories about his two-year stint in the Navy, his days as a student at Penn State, his career at General Electronics and in advertising, and mostly his travels to every track of note on the planet. “He has every edition of Track and Field News dating back to the 1950s,” said his niece Laura Gooch. “I went through about 100 boxes at his house. There were papers, magazines and lots of thank-you notes from writers he had mentored through the years.” Hometown Features was born out of his dream to cover the 1960 Rome Olympics, but the smoldering Cold War sped up the process, making Melbourne the first stop in ’56. Since international air travel hadn’t come along yet, he would make the trip on Texaco oil tankers from the West Coast through Sumatra then to Australia. The ride was secured though his dad, Enoch, a longtime executive with the company who played baseball for Billy Disch at Texas. After a childhood spent reading track stories in newspapers and magazines in New York, 29-year-old Jim Dunaway believed he could make money by writing stories about U.S. athletes competing in the Olympics and selling them to their hometown papers, hence the Hometown Features moniker. The plan was to send 35 letters to those publications to gauge their interest. His cousin Carolyn Bingham worked at the University of Chicago Press at the time and had a co-worker who was an excellent typist. The friend took on the project for 50 cents a page. “I didn’t realize then that I was taking part in a con job,” said Carolyn, 83. “Jim didn’t have any sports writ- ing experience, but he was my big cousin and my only source of worldly wisdom, so I went along with it.” The cover letter concluded with “James Dunaway, the greatest writer of all times.” Dunaway erupted in anger TAFWA Newsletter - Page 5 - April 2015 after reading the letter. “It should have read, ‘the greatest writer of all time!’ ” he yelled. Carolyn convinced him it wasn’t worth 35 retypes to get rid of a single “s.” Five papers responded, and while he came nowhere near turning a profit, he had a foot in the door.