USOC’s Report Lacking Details

In a lengthy report that provides details of the U.S. Olympic Committee’s operations, the USOC on Friday reported 2002 revenues of $146 million, operating expenses of $130 million and disclosed that chief executive Lloyd Ward’s annual compensation, on top of a $550,000 salary, includes the free use of two cars “for personal use, plus gas.”

Unclear, however, in the 90-plus page report, is how much money goes directly to U.S. athletes.

The report asserts that 77 cents of every $1 the USOC spends between 2001 and 2004, a total of about $375 million, will go to programs that “directly benefit athletes and their sports [federations].” It includes, however, in that analysis such costs as funding for anti-doping programs and transport of U.S. teams to the Olympics.

Of those figurative 77 pennies, it says that 33 go to “direct athlete support and programs.” It also says that “basic grants” amount to $2,500 “per athlete slot.”

Buried deep in the report, however, are important caveats: Certain USOC grants are subject to federal and state taxes. And receipt of a USOC grant may jeopardize NCAA eligibility.

The package, assembled after a call for details from David F. D’Alessandro, chairman and chief executive of John Hancock, a major Olympic sponsor, also does not address one of D’Alessandro’s primary concerns -- itemization of the goods and services the USOC gets from sponsors in addition to, or in lieu of, cash.

In a letter dated Thursday that accompanies the report, Ward acknowledged that the USOC’s tax forms have “not presented a consistent and comparable historical picture that provides clarity and transparency into our income statement.”

D’Alessandro had indicated as much in testimony Thursday before the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee, which is studying a wholesale makeover of the USOC. He later told reporters, referring to a draft of Ward’s letter he had reviewed that contains the same language in the letter made public Friday, “I think what that says is, ‘We’re terribly not transparent and our tax returns are wrong.’ ”

In a phone interview Friday, D’Alessandro said, “People need to follow the money to figure out how to fix the [USOC].”

Early Reese, the USOC’s financial officer, said Thursday that revenue and expenses were fully accounted for in recent USOC’s returns -- but acknowledged that the revenue, in particular the goods and services, called “value in kind,” or VIK, had “not been classified in a consistent manner.”

The report released Friday does not identify precisely what VIK the USOC gets, and where it comes from. It merely says the USOC used $16.1 million of VIK in 2002, including, for instance, $4.4 million in “travel” and $1.3 million in “food.”

Most of the USOC’s revenue, as has been the case for years, comes from TV royalty payments and corporate support, according to the report.

In 2002, the USOC got $55.1 million in TV money -- most of it, $54.5 million, from NBC, for the right to televise the Salt Lake City Games in the U.S. The USOC took in $22.1 million from the International Olympic Committee’s worldwide sponsor program, called TOP, plus $29.7 million in domestic sponsorship.

The report also says the USOC sent 1,089 people to Sydney in 2000 -- 613 athletes, 154 coaches or “team leaders,” 156 employees, 137 “working volunteers,” 15 USOC officers or officials and 14 “VIPs/guests.” The latter were not identified. Games expenses totaled $7.78 million.

Expenses for Salt Lake last year totaled $3.34 million. Along with the 211 athletes, 64 coaches or “team leaders,” 184 employees, 70 “working volunteers” and 21 officers or officials, the USOC sent eight “VIPs/guests.” The report does not name them, either.