By Duncan Mackay

January  6 - Scott Blackmun (pictured) today promised to put the United States back at the forefront of the Olympic Movement after admitting that they had not been "good stewards of the brand".  



The 52-year-old lawyer, who was officially unveiled as the new $450,000 (£282,000) per year chief executive of the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) at a press conference in Colorado Springs, acknowledged that re-establishing the organisation's position would need time invested. 

Blackmun said: "In my opinion [the Olympics] is the world's greatest brand and I don't think we have been good stewards of the brand."

The USOC have spent much of the last decade embroiled in a series of scandals and disputes that many believe have harmed the Olympics, ranging from drug scandals to rows over marketing revenue and trying to set up its own television channel against the wishes of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Blackmun admitted that a lot of fences need to be mended after Chicago's humiliating first-round exit last October in the voting for the 2016 Olympics.

It was a fact articulated by several IOC members afterwards who blamed the USOC's poor relationship with the Movement for the disastrous showing.

Blackmun said: "The work we have to do is difficult. 

"It's difficult to change things overnight. 

"I think the most important thing is that we are stepping in the right direction, doing the little things we need to do so we can look back and say we have a fantastic relationship because we built it block-by-block. 

"That's what we intend to do.

"At the end of the day relationships are a function of time and commitment and we need to start spending that time and making that commitment and becoming engaged in the Movement. 

"We are part of the worldwide Olympic Movement and the IOC is the leader of that Movement and we intend to become a much more regular guest over there."

There was criticism during the build-up to the IOC vote on 2016 that Stephanie Streeter, who had replaced the popular Jim Scherr as chief executive in March, had kept such a low-profile.

Blackmun intends to adopt a more visible role, starting at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver next month.

He said: "It's going to be a great opportunity for us to begin the engagement process with the IOC and international leaders, those constituencies where we have a lot of work to do and where we want to build long term and positive relationships. 

"Just being present is going to be an improvement. 

"We need to make the effort to go over and visit with them [the IOC], to spend time with them.

"Not only with the IOC but with the international federations, with the people who are otherwise influential in the world of sport. 

"I don't think we have invested that kind of time at the senior leadership level to the extent we could have or should have. 

"We need to respect that and we need to spend sometime listening."



Blackmun, though, refused to attribute the reasons for Chicago's defeat at the IOC Session in Copenhagen last October to the USOC.

He said: "Personally, I think Rio was destined to win. 

"They had a good bid and, I think importantly, the IOC supported strongly the idea of the Games going to South America. 

"I don't lay the blame for what happened there at the feet of the USOC."

Blackmun is keeping an open mind on when the US should launch another bid for the Olympics, although several American cities are already begin to prepare campaigns for the 2020 Summer Games and the 2022 Winter Games.
 
He said: "In terms of when it is appropriate for us to make a future bid, that's a complex question. 

"The answer is, I guess, we don't want to make it too soon but everyone recognises the importance of having the Games on American soil. 

"So, on a long-term basis, it is clearly a priority."

Blackmun has signed a four-year contract with the USOC and will start at its Colorado Springs headquarters on January 26 after a short holiday in Hawaii. 

He said: "This is a dream come true for me. 

"I believe in the Olympic Movement. 

"I believe in both pieces of the mission, both competitive excellence and inspiration. 

"I think the Olympic Movement is a fantastic tool for our youth. 

"I think its a wonderful message and I'm proud to be part of it."

Blackmun served briefly as the acting chief executive of the USOC in 2000 and 2001, before being passed over for the role permanently, and left to work for AEG, where he was involved in several projects, including the O2 Arena in London.

He said: "I think the time I spent at AEG was important. 

"AEG is a marketing driven organisation, a very complex organisation with a strong international presence." 

Blackmun clearly passionately believes in the power of the Olympic Movement and in helping re-establish the USOC, including restoring its reputation which has been damaged by a series of drugs scandals, involving some of the biggest names in sport, including Marion Jones, who was stripped of the five medals, including three gold, she won at Sydney in 2000 after admitting taking banned performance-enhancing drugs.

He said: "We have the ability to influence kids and their decisions and the more we message along those lines the better off we are going to fulfill our mission. 

"It's not just about winning medals. 

"We don't just want to win medals if we can't do so honourably. 

"It's about competing fairly and it's about competing fairly to the best of our ability."

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