In preparation for the 2020 U.S. Olympic Track and Field Team Trials and the 2021 International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) World Track and Field Championships, which will both take place at the University of Oregon’s Hayward Field, the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center is actively participating in campus-wide conversations about how it can showcase the excellence of the university through the lens of these world-class events.
The center is ramping up its efforts to engage with the Olympic ecosystem. It plans to reinstate its Business of the Olympic Games course for the 2019-2020 academic year, and it is building out an experiential learning module for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
“We’re working to ensure that our students are able to plug in to as many experiential learning opportunities as possible,” said Warsaw Center director Whitney Wagoner. “We’re also brainstorming potential programming that we can offer while the world comes together on our campus.”
In early 2019, the center completed two study tours focused on the games. Undergraduates and MBAs joined the center’s MBA program manager Craig Leon for a five-day alternate spring break in Colorado, which included an in-residence case study at the United State Olympic Committee National Training Center, as well as corporate site visits with Kroenke Sports and Entertainment, the Denver Broncos, and Adrenaline Agency.
The center also led a group of MBAs—along with students from Nyenrode University—on the college’s first study tour to Tokyo, where they were able to witness first-hand the city’s preparations for the 2020 games.
In addition, the annual MBA Engaging Asia study tour—to take place in September 2019—will swap out its usual Singapore swing for time in Tokyo.
“Adding new markets and new relationships to our global network are exciting developments for the center,” said Wagoner.
Meanwhile, excitement on campus is building as progress on the Hayward Field redesign becomes more evident day by day. The new track is scheduled to be complete in time for the trials and IAAF championships.
These expanded global and Olympic-themed opportunities are possible in part thanks to a generous gift from John Elkins, MS ’77. His diverse and successful career has many highlights, including serving as Visa’s global chief marketing officer. His passion for global business and his love for the Olympic movement inspired him to invest in our programs and students. We appreciate his generosity, along with that of so many others.
These are all tremendous opportunities for the college’s sports business students and serve to expand the Warsaw Center’s leadership in the global sports business landscape.
—Amanda Miner, Lundquist College Communications