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World Skating Federation

Q&A with Ron Pfenning

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WSF and USFSA

Dr. B.: Phyllis Howard recently announced that she will not seek re-election to her ISU post. Is this a sign that the USFSA leadership is about to jump to the WSF in a big way?

Ron: My understanding is that Mrs. Howard announced she would not seek re-election to USFSA President. The time may not yet be right for the USFSA to join the WSF. The USFSA must protect their athletes and the WSF is committed to doing the same. The WSF has not asked the USFSA or any federation to join the WSF. The USFSA Executive Committee has already unanimously endorsed the principles the WSF is founded upon. I would expect the USFSA Governing Council to also endorse the principles and concepts that the WSF represents.

Dr. B.: It seemed like there was a miscommunication between the WSF and the USFSA with regard to the timing of your announcement at the World Championships. In fact, the USFSA ended up looking a little foolish with their two statements -- "No, we don't have anything to do with these guys," then a week later, "OK we changed our minds: NOW we support the principles of the WSF." I don't suppose that it would be politic for you to talk about who dropped the ball in allowing that mix-up to occur, but maybe you could comment on the status of your relations with the leadership of the U. S. federation now.

Doris P.: Please tell us why the WSF announced that the WSF had the support of the USFSA at the news conference at Worlds.

Ron: At the WSF press conference on Tuesday, March 25th, we announced that the USFSA Executive Committee had endorsed the principles of the WSF. Later in the day I read a press release from the USFSA that stated the USFSA was not endorsing the WSF. That statement was accurate but it also intentionally neglected to say they were supporting the WSF's principles. Several members of the USFSA Ex Com confirmed to me that they had in fact voted unanimously to endorse the principles. It is my understanding that the Ex Com meeting was not officially adjourned until later in the week, therefore the minutes were not distributed to the Board of Directors until the end of the week. During the week I did feel as though I had egg on my face but knew I was speaking the truth and had to wait for the vindication. I personally feel I have a good relationship with the USFSA. The WSF is not a threat to the USFSA or any ISU Member. Federations now know there is an option; the WSF is the voice in our sport that represents what is right - integrity, honesty, transparency, accountability, zero tolerance, fair competitions, athletes' participation in governance, term limits, geographically balanced judging panels, etc.

Anonymous: Since USFSA is hiring a professional parliamentarian to run the Governing Council meeting, what steps are WSF going to take to make sure that their voice is heard at GC and not silenced through parliamentary maneuvering?

Ron: In recent years Carolyn Kruse has been an excellent parliamentarian for the Association so I don't fully understand the need to hire one. Regardless of who the parliamentarian is, I am sure the rights of the delegates and athletes to vote, speak, move motions and amendments, introduce new business matters, etc. will be upheld. I will be a delegate from the Yarmouth Ice Club and expect my delegate rights to be protected and respected.

Skater: What does the WSF recommend for current US team members to do about this situation? Are they permitted to voice their opinion?

Ron: When an athlete can no longer voice their opinion it is a very sad day for our sport. One should be true to themselves, be truthful and speak with the heart.

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Progress

Anonymous: How can we individually help? Can we write to the IOS to consider these proposals?

Joan S.: As a skating fan and USFSA member, what can me and others do to help support your efforts in freeing skaters from the increasing tyranny of the ISU?

Ron: Help is always welcome and there are different kinds of help needed. We need volunteers who support our cause. A letter-writing campaign, supporting the WSF, to the USFSA, IOC, other federations and to the media would be very beneficial; helpful links can be found on the WSF web site www.worldskating.org; our site also contains information about the WSF, how you can volunteer, Figure Skating news, and how you can help us financially. A critical need is fund raising. We are raising our funds through private donations. Everything we do costs money: printing, postage, phone, fax, computer access, press conferences, media kits, WSF organizational meetings, etc. We very much welcome any and all contributions, no amount is too small, and information regarding donations can be found on our web site. We have been granted 501(c) (3) status and donations are tax deductible here in the U.S.

Jenny: Can you describe your contributions to the sport in the nine years you were a member of the ISU Technical Committee, including actions taken on high profile judging scandals previous to the Salt Lake City Olympics (such as the deal making prior to the dance event at the Nagano Olympics, and the toe-tapping incident by pairs judges at the Helsinki World Championships), and, during the same period, your adherence to and promotion of the principles now adopted by the WSF?

Ron: Some specific areas where my contributions may be noteworthy are: the establishment of the Four Continents Championships, providing for the wild card slots that are available to enter the Olympic Winter Games, the acceptance of the 'carry lifts' in pair skating, advocacy for the elimination of the requirement for all entries at Worlds skate to skate the qualifying round, the establishment of a point system used to determine the number of entries into ISU Championships, the introduction of PowerPoint and revisions of curriculum used at Judges and Referee Seminars, the standardization of penalties in the Short Program deductions and revision of the format presented, and other areas that don't come immediately to mind. I did not participate in the evaluation of the dance event at the Nagano Olympics; that's the jurisdictions of the Ice Dance Technical Committee. I did review the videotape of the "toe-tapping" incident and provided my evaluation to the Chair of the FSTC. I have always supported within the FSTC strong sanctions of officials committing misconduct, repeated national bias and consistent poor judging. Often the ISU Council would not approve the sanctions being recommended and therefore the concerned individuals or members went without any punishment. Throughout my 20 years as an ISU Official and 40 years as a USFSA Official, I have always made every effort to be fair and honest and committed to the job at hand. I do believe the principles of the WSF are similar to my personal principles, especially in the areas of ethics and integrity.

Kim: What progress has the WSF made since Worlds?

Ron: When your need is to run a marathon and you're just starting to walk, each step seems to be real progress and yet not as significant when viewing the ultimate goal. We are taking each day at a time. It is troublesome to witness so much fear and intimidation targeted to those of us who wish to voice support for the WSF in any way. To read strongly worded threatening communications from the ISU and member federations is unsettling. I know our cause is right and have to think that others too know that it is right, and that's why they are reacting so negatively; we are challenging fiefdoms, and there exists the possibility that we will be successful. When we do prevail we will have rid the sport of corruption, collusion and unethical behavior. We will have returned the sport to the athletes. We are able to face each new challenging day just knowing what the eventual outcome can be.

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