Robert Hersh

Robert Hersh at the IAAF Council meeting in 2014

Robert "Bob" Hersh (born February 12, 1940) is a retired American lawyer. He is also the current Senior Vice President for the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), the world governing body for the Athletics, collection of sports known in the United States as including track and field, cross country, racewalking and road running. He is currently a board member of USA Track & Field (USATF), the national governing body for the sport.

The IAAF Council in 2014, Hersh is seated with the other Vice presidents, right hand center, next to President Lamine Diack

He has held numerous high ranking positions with both organizations that place him at the forefront of the sport. He started with the IAAF on the Technical Committee and as Chairman of the Competition Working Group in 1984. In 1999 he was elevated to the Council and in 2011 was elected Senior Vice President[1] over more recognized retired athletes Sebastian Coe and Sergey Bubka,[2] the two favorites to succeed IAAF President Lamine Diack at the next election in 2015.[3]

With USATF, he has been a board member since before the organization took on its current name, joining The Athletics Congress board in 1980.[4] He formerly served as USATF's General Counsel, and he was formerly the chairman of the USATF Rules committee and the Track and Field Records sub-committee. He is also a member of the Association of Track and Field Statisticians.

With his deep knowledge of the sport, Hersh has been the English language stadium announcer at many high-profile meets including the 1984 Summer Olympics through the 1996 Summer Olympics and also the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics, the IAAF World Championships in Athletics from 1991 to 2007, the IAAF World Cup in 1994, 1998 and 2006, the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics in 1987, 1999 and 2008, and the IAAF World Junior Championships in Athletics in 1994 and 1998.[5]

He is a graduate of Columbia University, where he was manager of the track and field team[6] and Harvard Law School.[7]

USATF controversy

Hersh's name became the center of controversy in 2014 when the delegates to the USATF National Convention voted overwhelmingly (392 to 70) to retain Hersh as the American representative to the IAAF Council, only to have the Board of Directors reverse that decision in their meeting as the delegates were on their way home, voting 11-1 to select USATF President Stephanie Hightower to replace Hersh.[8][9][10] Athlete Lauren Fleshman said Hightower should step aside, while David Torrence said "It doesn't make sense."[11]

References

  1. ↑ "Robert Hersh". IAAF. July 2, 2002.
  2. ↑ "2011 World Champs/Daegu: Hersh, Al-Hamad, Coe & Bubka, by Alfons Juck, note by Larry Eder". RunBlogRun.com. August 25, 2011.
  3. ↑ "Sergey Bubka elected as IAAF vice president after controversial re-vote at biennial Congress". The Daily Telegraph. August 25, 2011.
  4. ↑ "Board of Directors". USA Track & Field.
  5. ↑ http://www.usatf.org/News/NACAC-off-the-track.aspx
  6. ↑ "A Lion Moves Up". HepsTrack.com. September 4, 2011.
  7. ↑ "Hersh leads VP vote; Americans earn IAAF committee spots". TheConningTower.blogspot.com. August 27, 2011.
  8. ↑ "USATF BOD Ousts IAAF Senior VP Bob Hersh In Favor Of Hightower". TrackAndFieldNews.com. December 6, 2014.
  9. ↑ "USATF Board selects IAAF candidates". USA Track & Field. December 5, 2014.
  10. ↑ "Reid: Track's Hightower should step up and step aside". The Orange County Register. December 12, 2014.
  11. ↑ "Lauren Fleshman And David Torrence Irate On Twitter Over Bob Hersh / Stephanie Hightower USATF Election". LetsRun.com. December 5, 2014.
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