News & Notes HER TURN: Q&A WITH WOMEN’S COMMITTEE
Awilda Harrington has been the chair of the USA Triathlon Women’s Committee since 2010. Harrington will step down at year-end. The knowledgeable businesswoman and experienced member of several boards and associations recently sat down with USA Triathlon Magazine to talk about the committee.
USA Triathlon: When you took the helm of the Women’s Committee, the group had been relatively inactive. What was the first priority? Awilda Harrington: The first priority was to make the WC relevant to USA Triathlon female members and to populate the committee with women who represented a cross-section of the USAT membership and supported the mission and vision of the WC. USAT: What were three major accomplishments of the committee since 2010? AH: Visibility, including this column; the ongoing outreach to the regions through the matching reimbursable grants program; and populating the WC with exceptional women. I’m leaving the WC in good hands. Tara Comer will continue to lead and grow the committee and provide leaders for USAT. In the past two years we have developed outreach programs thru the grants, conducted webinars and held a seminar in St Petersburg, Fla., that provided for continuing education through our website. USAT: What are you most proud of during your time leading the committee? AH: When I was named WC Chair there wasn’t much interest or
support for the WC. I have to say that the women who took that leap of faith and trusted in my abilities to grow the committee in accordance with USAT’s vision and mission statement made our progress to date possible. USAT: More women than ever are involved in multisport; what is the Women’s Committee’s role in reaching these women and keeping them in the sport? AH: The WC will continue with programs that the regions and the female membership will use to better appreciate, succeed and
Paul Phillips/Competitive Image
enjoy the multisport lifestyle. As part of our goals we bring women to the start line as well as “back” to the start line. The opportunities for women in the sport are endless including coaching, officiating as well as competing. These are all areas the WC is addressing through its programs. USAT: What does the future hold for the committee? AH: The WC will continue to make our women relevant at the international level as well as represent the gender that I feel will soon be the majority of USAT membership. It’s obvious that at the national office, our board and the start line, women still have a way to go. Based on the quality of the leadership that comprises our WC, it’s a short time before women populate the board and fill staff positions at the level that equal the percentage of women crossing the finish line.
Her Turn is presented by the USA Triathlon Women’s Committee and is intended to address topics affecting female participants in the sport. Visit usatriathlon.org/womenscommittee to learn more.
USA TRIATHLON FATALITY INCIDENTS STUDY U
SA Triathlon, as the National Governing Body for the sport in the United States, views the well-being of our members
as a core imperative. Event-related fatalities have captured the attention of our community, raising concerns among athletes, family members and other supporters, event organizers, sponsors, community leaders, and the medical community. Over the past several months, we have conducted a careful review of the collective experience with fatalities at USA Triathlon-sanctioned events from 2003 through 2011. Our objectives were to attempt to bring clarity, identify potential patterns and underlying causes, and investigate opportunities to make any future improvements in event safety.
A five-member Medical Review Panel was convened, inclusive of 60 USA TRIATHLON WINTER 2013
three physicians and two race directors with broad experience in triathlon, and particular interest or expertise in the issue of race safety. This group reviewed information for 45 cases and assembled its findings into a preliminary report. The preliminary report was shared first with the attendees of the USA Triathlon Race Director Symposium in January 2012 and more recently with a Review Group that was assembled to solicit specific feedback. This Review Group included representatives from the broader triathlon community — athletes, coaches, event organizers, risk management experts and medical professionals. The report includes a shared responsibility matrix. View a PDF file of the USA Triathlon Fatality Incidents Study here: http://bit.ly/USATstudy.