Category Archives: SCI Talk

Kerry Gillespie on Gender Determination in Sports

Gender determination has becoming an increasingly heated and debated topic in sports. What does it truly mean to have a level playing field in sports? What role should gender determination have in this overarching goal?

The Case of Dutee Chand

Some countries have started their selection process for the IAAF World Championships in Athletics in August, located in Beijing, China. One country in particular – India – faces a dilemma with teen sprint-sensation Dutee Chand, who is currently appealing a ban from the sports international governing body. The IAAF had not allowed Chand to compete as a female due to her body’s natural ability to produce unusually high levels of testosterone. What is a fair process for gender determination in sports?

On preserving athletes privacy

Gender in society used to be thought of as much more black and white – male or female. “In the 1960s, female athletes that looked male were forced to strip during gender testing,” Gillespie said. However, as society changes its views the IAAF must adapt. “Now, the IAAF is trying to have a more scientific approach for gender testing. However, these new tests are proving to be just as harmful for the athletes.”

On fairness

Not everyone gets tested. There aren’t random gender tests as there are for performance enhancing drugs. “The IAAF only tests people “when someone complains and says ‘that person is not a woman,'” Gillespie said.

Can we level the playing field?

“Everyone wants a leveled playing field, but then why are we only doing gender testing for women?” Gillespie said. “There could be men with unusually high levels of testosterone too. There could also be males with unusually low levels of testosterone, so would we then allow them to compete as women? People have genetic advantages. I don’t think we can ever 100% level the playing field.”

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Danny Mackey on Coaching Styles

What are critical considerations when working with elite athletes? How might a coach alter their coaching style to the needs of an athlete? What challenges exist to build a winning culture? Danny Mackey, Head Coach of the Brooks Beasts Track Club in Seattle shares his thoughts on coaching styles.

Danny Mackey on Team Structure

The Beasts have about 10 athletes, but this small group is making waves on the international scene. Several have qualified for international championship meets. Part of that success has been valuing each person’s positive qualities and thoroughly developing each individual, instead of recruiting many athletes with just a handful running well. Each person brings something unique to this newly-formed club. “I’m very humanistic with how I approach the athletes,” Mackey said. “I talk with each person differently, depending on what their needs are. Our approach is very team-focused; it’s very synergistic”

Dedication and Team Matter

For Mackey, getting the right athlete isn’t simply a function of picking the flat-out fastest collegians. The recruiting process is getting accomplished athletes with specific criteria.

“I first like to know how dedicated to this sport the athletes are,” Mackey said. “I want to know that they are ready to work hard and maximize their potential. Adaptability is really important to me too. There are so many variables outside of your control in the sport, so how have they dealt with those variables in the past.”

Mackey is also curious with how the athletes have excelled in a team environment. “I look at the athletes’ relationship with teammates and coaches. They need to be able to speak positively about people they work with on a daily basis. Even if there were issues, how did they manage those issues and get them resolved?”

How do you deal with conflict on your team?

“I have an open door policy,” Mackey said. “I do give a lot of credit to the older athletes on the team. They help manage some of the day-to-day issues that may come up.”

Keeping the little things in check is important to Mackey. The team has had a lot of success with cohesion, but Mackey thinks that it’s vital to always be aware of small conflicts. “You need to resolve issues quickly before they turn into major problems.”

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Vinnie Iyer on Character Concerns in the NFL

The NFL draft season is here and teams are making choices about which type of players to add to their rosters, both for their skills on the field and their character off the field. In an episode of SCI TV, Vinnie Iyer of Sporting News discusses The Dallas Cowboys’ recent acquisition of Greg Hardy given increased attention on off-field conduct in the NFL. The Cowboys’ signing comes less than a year after the Ray Rice scandal brought media scrutiny, once again, to behavior off the field and the role the League and teams might have in addressing those behaviors.

Vinnie Iyer on Talent vs. Character

Vinnie Iyer has been covering the NFL for many years and sees the current character and off-field news as part of a much larger mentality in the league where talent often trumps behavior.

“Guys with more talent seem to have more leeway off the field,” Vinnie Iyer said. “I don’t think that’s right, but that’s the reality of the business of getting talented players. It makes the hypocritical things we hear about the NFL make a lot of sense.”

There can however, be a difference between public perception and reality within the league. By focusing on the negative, figures like Ray Rice and others garner lots of media attention while other players’ positive actions go unnoticed.

“Guys just doing normal things and being good people, that doesn’t interest us,” Vinnie Iyer said.

Character’s Effect on Draft Decisions

So how does character fit into a team’s draft calculus? There are some teams that don’t want to take on high risk players, while others like The Dallas Cowboys give second chances and are willing to manage more off-field risk. For the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, that choice could be looming with Jameis Winston.

“You have to have value on the field to overcome these bad things,” Vinnie Iyer said. “Jameis Winston is going to be a lightning rod figure. Is the NFL going to empower him to do something a little bit more?”

Minimum Character Standard?

In the future Vinnie Iyer sees some version of a minimum character standard for players in the NFL, but teams will always have a choice to make.

“I think it’s on the league to have a little more defined policy, be a little more in front of it, not be reactionary,” Vinnie Iyer said. “Fans have to be involved too, then we’ll see the policies change.”

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Smart Drugs, the Brain and Sports with Anjan Chatterjee

Doping has been around sports for years and stars such as Lance Armstrong and Alex Rodriguez continue to capture the public’s imagination. But the future of doping may be radically different. So-called smart drugs and cosmetic neurology present a new frontier in performance enhancement along with new ethical considerations. In an April episode of SCI TV, accomplished neuroscientist Anjan Chatterjee of Pennsylvania Hospital and the University of Pennsylvania talks about the ethics and dangers of smart drugs and other enhancements in sports.

Neuroscience and Sports

Anjan Chatterjee studies the intersection of cognitive neuroscience and sports, looking at how developments in our understanding of the brain can impact performance. He focuses on two main questions around performance enhancement.

“What are we able to do as far as enhancing our abilities, and what are the potential ethical implications?”

Ethics of Enhanced Performance?

Traditional methods of improving performance are simple yet nuanced: physical training, enough rest and proper nutrition. Drugs such as steroids, EPO and stimulants have been used for years to gain an edge, and the arms race between users and enforcement is ongoing.

Yet as a culture, some types of enhancement we seem to accept as permissible. Beta blockers are used by musicians, public speakers and golfers to reduce tremors and anxiety. Retinal surgery is used by baseball players and others to improve vision better than 20/20.

“There is a long tradition of different types of doping,” Chatterjee said. “Where you draw the line on that seems to be a cultural thing. At the end of the day whether that bears out on a principled account is not so clear.”

The Future: Smart Drugs

The future of performance enhancement may not involve traditional drugs at all. Smart drugs and non-invasive brain stimulation, which Chatterjee calls “cosmetic neurology,” are in the early stages of helping people learn certain tasks quicker.

Smart drugs or cosmetic neurology work by using devices on the skull to inhibit or stimulate parts of the brain via magnetic pulses or direct current stimulation. This can be beneficial if used while trying to learn a task. Lab studies have shown participants were quicker at learning certain motor skills than their control counterparts, and showed improved function up to three months later.

“It’s not so difficult to conceive that this could become part of people’s training regimens,” Chatterjee said.

No Way to Detect

Since smart drugs and cosmetic neurology have no signal or biological marker, there is no way to detect them and likely wouldn’t be.

“If it helps (performance) and there is no way to detect it, how do we deal with that?” Chatterjee said. “If you can’t enforce it, if you can’t govern it, how do we as a sports culture address that?”
These enhancements will continue to test the boundaries of ethics, safety and enforcement.

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David Steele Discusses Locker Room Culture

Sports controversies continue to revolve around issues of abuse and violence. These issues occur within team confines, as was the case with the Miami Dolphins and Richie Incognito, or off the field and away from the team as seen in the Ray Rice domestic abuse case. David Steele of Sporting News discusses the implications of locker room culture on SCI TV. He examines what worked for the Dolphins in their response and what other teams should do to improve the locker room as a work place.

David Steele on Off Field Issues

David Steele has been covering the NFL for many years and has focused more on off-the-field issues such as the impact cases like the Dolphins bully scandal and the Ray Rice domestic abuse case.

“I get to dig into the issues that affect the players as individuals,” David Steele says. “The interactions between players and management and players and coaches has given me insight into where sports and athletes fit into society.”

Locker Rooms as Work Places

On the challenges of addressing team culture, David Steele thinks that the unique interdependence of teammates creates a work environment unlike other professions, bringing out the best and the worst in athletes. That can also mean education on what life will be like after their career is over.

“You can’t act the way that you’re allowed to act within the team confines out there in the real world,” David Steele said. “There is an adjustment in the athlete’s life that they have to make once this sport is over.”

Improving the Locker Room

So what can be done to change the locker room into a different kind of work place? Organizations have to change their mentality to understand and support respectful team camaraderie. The Miami Dolphins’ response to the bullying scandal is a prime example of what other teams can learn.

“The biggest thing they did was they got the toxic element out of the locker room,” David Steele said, referring to Incognito. “Then they really developed a theme that went top to bottom, from ownership down through management, the coaching staff and the players, that there can’t be any of the clicks and divisiveness that was being formed in that locker room.”

Learning From the Best

David Steele points to the Seattle Seahawks, New England Patriots and San Antonio Spurs as models for professional locker rooms. They are able to bring people from different cultures and backgrounds together to succeed as a team.

“They are good examples because even as players come and go, these guys really do care for each other,” David Steele said. “They somehow come together, to not only win a lot but to want to stay together and succeed together.”
More teams could learn from their example.

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Will Leitch Discusses Chris Borland Case

Former 49ers linebacker Chris Borland turned more heads with his sudden retirement announcement than during his first year of a promising NFL career. In a March episode of SCI TV, Sports on Earth Senior Writer Will Leitch explores the curious case of Borland and the potential impact on the league. Leitch talks about the decision making process that Borland and other football players will likely use when choosing the preservation of health over a large paycheck, and what impact, if any, he thinks this case will have on the NFL and the sport of football in general.

Health Effects of Football

As the founder of Deadspin, Leitch enjoys finding interesting sports angles outside the mainstream. Chris Borland’s unique retirement, and the flurry of social commentary around it, provide a platform for discussing the larger health effects of football and how we think about the NFL.

“Nothing happens in a vacuum in the NFL,” Leitch said. “You can’t just be an independent actor, you have to stand for this larger organization.”

Leitch thinks that in many ways Borland’s decision cuts to the core of the league because of the type of player he was.

“You have a player that in a lot of ways represents what the league stands for, this gritty, fighter of a guy who’s tough and smart and everything the league should be promoting,” Leitch said. “He made what he saw was a rational decision. The ripples in that wake speak to the potential enormity of what Borland could stand for.”

Not Your Typical Rookie

At the same time Borland is not your typical rookie, coming from a family with more privilege and perhaps more perspective, than many NFL recruits. Either way, commentators and scouts are already watching how players weigh the long term risks of playing football.

“There’s a definite sense in the NFL that this is worrisome,” Leitch said. “This is something that’s becoming not just a ‘journalist problem,’ but a talent problem.”

But none of this seems an imminent threat to the league. Ratings are still sky high and the NFL is more profitable than ever. Leitch thinks Borland’s case and the concussion issue is a problem for the league in the long run; in the short run, business as usual.

Moral Habits vs. Viewing Habits

“There’s less pressure on (the NFL) to change than maybe there should be,” Leitch says, noting that for fans, “there is a disconnect between people’s moral habits and their viewing habits.”

In the end, Leitch thinks the discussion around the future of football needs to be more nuanced than simply great entertainment versus grave health danger.

“You have to be honest about the enjoyment of the game and what people get out of it rather than just scolding,” Leitch says. “That makes for a more honest conversation and a more complex one that doesn’t have easy answers.”

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Former College Athletes Discusses Student-Athlete Experience

Lately the student-athlete experience has undergone scrutiny in the media regarding recent changes and proposals around the NCAA. In a March episode of SCI TV, current and former collegiate student-athletes across a spectrum of universities and sports shed light on their experiences and reflect on common challenges. The special panel consists of athletes who have competed for universities across the country in sports ranging from football, track and field, baseball, and volleyball. They discuss the value of their experiences, the challenges of balancing competing priorities as college athlete, and the differing support at their universities.

Balance is Key

While the five person panel largely described their student-athlete experiences as overwhelmingly positive, all agreed that balancing athletics and academics is a major hurdle. There is often an implicit choice on where to put your primary focus, affecting which major one chooses and the likelihood of a post collegiate athletic career.

Ian Dobson, who ran track and field and cross country at Stanford and went on to run professionally in the 2008 Olympics, spoke about choosing a major that fit with athletics and watching teammates decide whether to pin their post-collegiate hopes on running or academics.

“At some point in the middle of your college experience people would decide whether or not they thought a professional career was realistic,” said Dobson, who chose to focus on running professionally. “That was one of the hardest things for me, knowing that I’m making a conscious decision to miss out on all these amazing opportunities that school provides.”

Husband and wife Stetzon and Bethany Bair, who played football and volleyball respectively at the University of Oregon, say that finding a life balance between all the tasks of a student-athlete is difficult, but manageable with the right support and mentality.

“It definitely is a challenge, but being married and having a family really puts your priorities in line,” Stetzon said. “For us the big picture is more than sports, and that’s been a big help.”

Future Matters

When deciding on a future career path Dobson and Zach Daeges, who played baseball at Creighton before joining the Red Sox, were glad to have the extra time that their professional careers allowed to figure out what they wanted to do after sports.

“I have a much better understanding of what I want to do now,” said Daeges, who is pursuing an MBA at Oregon. “In a lot of ways it’s been beneficial to have had that period where I got to play a sport and figure things out later in life.”

Resources Taken for Granted

While the group cited parents, older siblings, teammates, and alumni as common support structures, almost all of the athletes said they did not use official academic and career resources as much as they should have, and at the time even rolled their eyes at the resources.

“I didn’t really want to accept the fact I wasn’t going to be a student athlete anymore. In hindsight it backfired because I had a really hard time after I was done with volleyball; I didn’t have plan, didn’t really utilize those resources to help plan the next step,” said Bethany Bair.

Partly because of the difficult balance between athletics, academics, and social life, there is a segregation on many college campuses between athletes and other students. Teammates and fellow student-athletes become natural friends through daily schedules and shared goals.

“There’s this conventional wisdom that you can only do two of the three well, and you solve that problem by combining two. I chose to combine my athletics and social life, and by default that’s what most of us end up doing,” Dobson said.

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Legal Issues in Sports | Paul Greene

From the Olympics to the collegiate level Paul Greene of Global Sports Advocates has seen his share of sports cases, representing elite athletes and governing bodies around the world. In a recent episode of SCI TV, Greene discusses major sports law issues including anti doping, Title IX liability, trademark and contract cases, and more with SCI Founder Joshua Gordon. Greene is recognized by Chambers USA and Super Lawyers as one of America’s leading sports lawyers.

Saving Careers

Greene found his way into sports law after a decade in broadcasting and wanted to make a larger impact in the field. The athletes he represents often come to him in last ditch efforts to save a season or career, and emotions can run high.

One of his first cases involved an Olympic hopeful who was wrongly barred from the Games. “That’s what I like about these sports law cases, it’s how meaningful they are to the people you’re representing,” Greene said.

Since much of sports law takes place in the public eye, appropriate messaging can be more critical than in other areas of law to manage the impact on reputation.

Control the Message

“I always tell clients, no matter which side they are on, you have to control the message. You have to control how you disseminate information, how you speak, everything has to be disciplined and thought out.”

Doping cases attract special media attention, but many cases are more nuanced than the public is led to believe. Greene doesn’t have sympathy for the clear cut cases where athletes were intentionally cheating, but other situations are not so simple.

“Most people assume that every athlete that tests positive has culpability when that isn’t the case,” Greene said.

Proactive Approaches for Institutions

Sports law also encompases issues at the institutional level, and Greene works to help organizations and governing bodies approach emerging issues proactively.

In the collegiate world there can be uncertainty around the implications of Title IX, especially sections on sexual harassment and sexual assault. Green helps institutions make sure they have systems in place to protect themselves from the errant actions of students and employees.

“You can’t be indifferent. If you see something happen, if something gets reported, you have to jump on it right away, you have to take action, you have to be transparent, and you have to make sure the person’s rights are protected,” Greene says. “Institutions get in trouble when they don’t do things by the book. When you’re trying to just react, that’s generally a recipe for disaster.”

Greene thinks that the institutions getting it right are those that handle issues with outside assistance. People unconnected to an organization bring credibility in a time of crisis and can identify issues before they become major legal and media relations problems, which is more cost effective in the long run.

“People never want to spend money on lawyers unless they have to, but when you talk about doing things on the front end it’s always less expensive than doing things on the backend when everything blows up.”

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Controlling the Olympic Moment

In this episode of SCI TV, researcher and former professional runner Dr. Anne Shadle discusses her study that searched for commonalities in the stories of three Olympic gold medal-winning athletes in Track and Field. Shadle wanted to explore the key factors, beyond talent, physical ability and technical training that impacted athletes’ success and helped win the Olympic gold. The mental and emotional traits she uncovered seem not only critical to peak athletic performance but to any major life endeavor. How do athletes go about controlling the Olympic moment?

How Do the Best Think and Prepare?

Shadle became interested in athlete psychology as a student athlete at the University of Nebraska where she was an NCAA champion in the mile and 1500 meters. She pursued a professional running career but it was in her graduate work at the University of Missouri that she really started asking questions about how the best think and prepare.

Mind-Body Connection

“I’ve always been curious about the mind-body connection,” Shadle said. “I’ve had a curiosity about what do the best athletes in the world do, how do they think, and how does that impact their performance?”

That interest led her to research how the best athletes stay focused on the biggest stage. Shadle interviewed several Olympic gold medalists to uncover their narratives and understand pieces of their success story. She describes her findings as ‘Controlling the Olympic Moment.’

Key Traits

There were several commonalities and key traits among the athletes. They were intrinsically motivated, had the ability to self-regulate, possessed grit or perseverance over time, and had a support system filled with positive relationships.

“These athletes remained focused on their mission and were able to block out all these distractions to deliver their best performance,” Shadle said. “They were very good at emotional control and composure.”

Such traits allowed them to “navigate the crazy” at big meets, including the many internal and external distractions that can throw athletes off their game.

“A characteristic of a very elite athlete is that they spend almost all of their time focusing on the things that they can control which is their own mind, their own performance, their own preparation,” Shadle said.

Innate or Learned?

So are these characteristics innate or can they be learned? Shadle thinks it’s a little of both. Listening to their early athletic experiences, Shadle found that while the athletes had the beginnings of singular focus, they also learned and improved on these skills throughout their professional career. In short, everyone can get better.

Shadle thinks that the lessons from elite athletes can be applied at all levels, and not just in sport.

“Controlling the Olympic moment doesn’t necessarily mean every four years,” Shadle says. “It’s being able to respond in these critical moments, and in our personal relationships; how to ask for that promotion, make a proposal, prepare for these big moments in our lives whatever that may be.”

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Tom Jernstedt of the College Football Playoff Selection Committee Shares Insights

In this episode of SCI TALK, we are joined by Tom Jernstedt of the College Football Playoff Selection Committee. He shares his fascinating experience with this historic change in NCAA Athletics along with insights from the past 40 years of overseeing college championships.

Listen to this episode of SCI Talk

About Mr. Jernstedt:

Former NCAA Executive Vice President

Served as senior-level executive, including executive vice president, deputy executive director and chief operating officer, throughout 38-year NCAA career (1972-2010).
Supervised NCAA Division I, II and III football, including NCAA Football Board of Directors, College Football Officiating LLC and Football Issues Committee.
Recruited by legendary football coach Len Casanova; four-year scholarship student-athlete, University of Oregon (1963-1967).

Current Occupation: Senior counselor, The Jernstedt Company.

Career Highlights:

Consultant, Mountain West Conference (2012-2013); Big 12 Conference (2010)
Oversaw development of 88 Division I, II and III men’s and women’s NCAA championships. Staff liaison to numerous external Association-related committees.
Directed all facets of NCAA basketball, increasing multi-year television contract revenue from $1.2 million (1972) to $10.8 billion (2010).
Led various internal functional groups: administration and finance, championships and event management, communications, membership services, public affairs, branding and promotions, broadcasting and corporate alliances.
Facilitated NCAA governance plan that incorporated women’s championships into NCAA structure (late 1970′s).
Indianapolis Super Bowl Host Committee, Board of Directors (2009-2012).
National Football Foundation, Legacy Award (2010).
National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, Inductee (2010).
USA Basketball, Edward S. Steitz Award (2010).
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, John Bunn Award (2001).
USA Basketball, Board of Directors (1976-2010), President (2000-2005); United States Olympic Committee, Board of Directors (1974-2002).
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Board of Trustees (1989-2010).
US Collegiate Sports Council, Board of Directors (1987-2010), VP (2004-2010).
Held three athletic administrative positions at University of Oregon (1969-1972).

Education:

Bachelor’s degree in political science, University of Oregon (1967).
Master’s degree in education, University of Oregon (1973).

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