Amateur Athletic Union

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Amateur Athletic Union of The United States
Motto "Sports for All, Forever."
Formation January 21, 1888
Type Amateur Sports Organization
Headquarters Lake Buena Vista, Florida
Membership
 205 National Olympic Committees
President
 Dr. Roger Goudy
Website aausports.org

The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It claims to have over 670,000 participants and over 100,000 volunteers.

The AAU was founded on January 21, 1888, with the goal of creating common standards in amateur sport.[1] Since then, most national championships in the United States have taken place under AAU leadership. From its founding as a publicly supported organization, the AAU has represented US sports within the various international sports federations. It has grown over the years to become one of the leading and most influential associations.

The AAU formerly worked closely with the United States Olympic Committee to prepare US athletes for the Olympic Games. As part of this, the AAU Junior Olympic Games were introduced in 1949. Young people 8 to 16 years of age, or older in certain sports, can participate in these games. Many future World and Olympic champions have appeared in these events, which are still held every year.

In the 1970s, the AAU received growing criticism. Many claimed that its regulatory framework was outdated. Women were banned from participating in certain competitions and some runners were locked out. There were also problems with sporting goods that did not meet the standards of the AAU. During this time, the Amateur Sports Act of 1978 organized the United States Olympic Committee and saw the re-establishment of state-supported independent associations for the Olympic sports. As a result, the AAU lost its influence and importance in international sports, and focused on the support and promotion of predominantly youthful athletes, as well as on the organization of national sports events.

History

The AAU was founded in 1888 by William Buckingham Curtis to establish standards and uniformity in amateur sport.[1] During its early years the AAU served as a leader in international sport representing the United States in the international sports federations. The AAU worked closely with the Olympic movement to prepare athletes for the Olympic Games.

After the Amateur Sports Act of 1978 broke up the AAU's responsibility as the national Olympic sports governing body, the AAU focused on providing sports programs for all participants of all ages beginning at the local and regional levels. The philosophy of the AAU is "Sports for All, Forever." The AAU is divided into 56 distinct district associations, which annually sanction 34 sports programs, 250 national championships, and over 30,000 age division events. The AAU events have over 500,000 participants and over 50,000 volunteers.

Breakup

The Amateur Sports Act of 1978 was precipitated by grumblings of the inefficiency of the AAU to manage the multitude of sports at the Olympic level. USA Gymnastics was formed initially as a feeder program in 1963 as a response to perceived poor performance by the American performers in the Olympics and at World Championships. The USWF was formed in 1968 as an effort to take Wrestling as an independent governing body. Their position was supported when FILA the world governing body refused to accept membership of "umbrella" sports organizations like the AAU.

After years of grumbling by athletes, the International Track Association was formed immediately after the 1972 Olympics to provide Track and Field athletes an opportunity to make money from their sporting efforts. Participants in the professional league were "banned for life" from the Olympics and their record breaking performances were never accepted.

Programs

Programs offered by the AAU include: AAU Sports Program, AAU Junior Olympic Games, AAU James E. Sullivan Memorial Award and the AAU Complete Athlete Program. In addition, the President's Challenge program is administered on behalf of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. The AAU has 33 national committees to organize its activities in particular sports.[2]

In 1994, the AAU joined forces with the Walt Disney World Resort, signing a 30-year agreement. As part of that agreement, many of AAU's national championships in many sports are played at the Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista.[3] In 1996, the AAU relocated its national headquarters to Lake Buena Vista, Florida, adjacent to Disney World. More than 40 AAU national events are conducted at the ESPN Wide World of Sports. The ESPN Wide World of Sports features a double-deck 7,500—seat baseball stadium and baseball quadraplex, a fieldhouse that accommodates up to six hardwood courts, a softball quadraplex, two youth baseball fields, a track and field complex, and four multi-purpose performance fields sized for soccer tournaments.

AAU operates under a 501(c)(3) tax-exemption letter granted by the federal government in 1996.

Sports offered

The Amateur Athletic Union offers participants sports teams in their local community that they can join and compete with other athletes their own age. There are teams in most sports ranging from 9U to 18U, allowing children to play for championships in sports against other children similar in age and athletic development.

The AAU offers sports teams in:

Aerobics Jumprope
Athletics Lacrosse
Badminton Martial Arts
Baseball Soccer
Basketball Softball
Baton Twirling Surfing
Beach Volleyball Swimming and Diving
Bowling Table Tennis
Cheerleading Taekwondo

Trampoline and Tumbling
Dance Volleyball
Football and Flag football Water Polo
Powerlifting Olympic weightlifting
Gymnastics Wrestling
Hockey AAU Junior Olympic Games
Golf

United Hockey Union

The United Hockey Union (UHU) is a group of junior ice hockey leagues and the NCHA college club league based in North America. The UHU is overseen and insured by the Amateur Athletic Union and was founded in 2012. Neither body is recognized by USA Hockey, Hockey Canada, or the International Ice Hockey Federation.

AAU Hockey sponsors national tournaments[4] for minor hockey levels. A North American Championship for Squirt/Atom and PeeWee levels as well as Midget and Bantam[5] levels is set for debut in 2015 in cooperation with the Canadian Independent Hockey Federation (CIHF).

Districts

The Amateur Athletic Union is separated into 55 districts.
2. New England (New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Vermont)[6]
3. Adirondack (That portion of New York State east and north of Broome, Cortland, Dutchess, Onondaga, Orange, Oswego and Sullivan Counties)[7]
4. Niagra (State of New York west of and including Broome, Cortland, Onondaga and Oswego Counties) [8]
5. Connecticut (State of Connecticut) [9]
6. New York Metropolitan (New York, south of and including Dutchess, Orange, Sullivan and Ulster Counties; also the Canal Zone) [10]
7. New Jersey (New Jersey north of and including Hudson, Mercer and Monmouth Counties) [11]
8. Middle Atlantic (New Jersey, south of Mercer and Monmouth County; all of the State of Delaware and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, east of and including Bedford, Centre, Clinton and Potter Counties) [12]
9. Maryland (State of Maryland except the counties of Montgomery and Prince Georges) [13]
10. Potomac Valley (All territory within the District of Columbia, counties of Montgomery and Prince Georges in the State of Maryland, and counties of Arlington and Fairfax and cities of Alexandria and Falls Church in the Commonwealth of Virginia) (formerly District of Columbia) [14]
11. Western Pennsylvania (All counties in Pennsylvania west of Bedford, Centre, Clinton, Huntingdon and Potter Counties and the Counties of Brooke, Hancock, Marshall and Ohio in West Virginia) [15]
12. Virginia (Commonwealth of Virginia except the Counties of Arlington and Fairfax and cities of Alexandria and Falls Church) [16]
13. North Carolina (State of North Carolina) [17]
14. Florida (Florida, except Miami-Dade, Broward, that part of Hendry County West of Route 833 and Palm Beach Counties) [18]
15. Southeastern (The State of Alabama and the State of Tennessee) [19]

16. Indiana (All of State of Indiana excepting Clark, Dearborn and Floyd Counties with the reservation that all wrestling therein be controlled by the Indiana District) [20]

17. Ohio (State of Ohio except the counties of Ashland, Ashtabula, Belmont, Columbiana, Crawford, Cuyahoga, Erie, Geauga, Huron, Jefferson, Lake, Lorain, Mahoning, Medina, Portage, Richland, Seneca, Stark, Summit, Trumbull, Tuscarawus and Wayne); and the Dearborn County in the State of Indiana) [21]

18. Lake Erie (The Counties of Ashland, Ashtabula, Belmont Columbiana, Crawford, Cuyahoga, Erie, Geauga, Huron, Jefferson, Lake, Lorain, Mahoning, Medina, Portage, Richland, Seneca, Stark, Summit, Trumbull, Tuscarawus and Wayne) (formerly Northeastern Ohio) [22]

19. Michigan (State of Michigan) [23]

20. Wisconsin (State of Wisconsin) [24]

21. Central Illinois (Illinois, except Calhoun, Greene, Jersey, Madison, Monroe and St. Clair Counties-counties of Calhoun, Greene, Jersey, Madison, Monroe and St. Clair given to Ozark District, with reservation that all judo therein to be controlled by Central District) [25]

22. Ozark (Missouri east of and including the following counties, Camden, Dallas, Douglas, Knox, Miller, Monroe, Montgomery, Osage, Ozark, Pike, Scotland, Shelby, including the city of St. Louis, and Webster. Counties of Calhoun, Greene, Jersey, Madison, Monroe and St. Clair in Illinois with reservation that all judo therein be controlled by Central Illinois District) [26]

23. Arkansas (State of Arkansas and Bowie County, Texas) [27]

24. Southern (The State of Louisiana and the State of Mississippi) [28]

25. Gulf (That part of the State of Texas bounded on the North and including the counties of Angelina, Houston, Leon, Nacogdoches, Robertson and Shelby; on the East by the State of Louisiana; on the South by the Gulf of Mexico and on the West by and including the counties of Austin, Brazos, Colorado, Fort Bend, Grimes, Matagorda, Robertson, Waller, Washington and Wharton) [29]

26. Southwestern Dallas/Fort Worth area and the rest of the Northeast part of Texas

27. Oklahoma

28. Missouri Valley

29. Nebraska

30. Minnesota

31. Montana

32. Colorado

33. Southern Pacific

34. Utah

35. Inland Empire

36. Pacific Northwest

37. Oregon

38. Pacific

39. Hawaii

40. Iowa

41. Kentucky

42. New Mexico

43. South Texas

44. Pacific Southwest

45. Georgia

46. Central California

47. West Texas

48. Arizona

49. Southern Nevada

50. Florida Gold Coast

51. West Virginia

52. North Dakota

54. South Dakota

55. South Carolina

56. Alaska

58. Wyoming

61. Puerto Rico

Presidents

The following people served as President of the Amateur Athletic Union.

Name Term Notes and references
William Buckingham Curtis 1888 to 1895 He was the founder and the first president of the Amateur Athletic Union.[30]
James Edward Sullivan 1906 to 1909 [31]
George Franklin Pawling 1910 to 1911 [32]
Gustavus Town Kirby 1911 to 1912 [33][34]
Alfred John Lill, Jr. 1913 to 1914 [33][35]
George J. Turner 1915 to 1916 He was the treasurer of the South Atlantic Association and then the president of the Amateur Athletic Union from 1915 to 1916.[36]
Avery Brundage 1928 to 1934 He was also the fifth president of the International Olympic Committee serving from 1952 to 1972.
Jeremiah T. Mahoney 1934 to 1935
Avery Brundage 1935 to 1936 This was his second non-consecutive term.
Jeremiah T. Mahoney 1936 to 1939 This was his second non-consecutive term.
Bartow S. Weeks
Louis J. Fisher ? to 1964 He was the 30th president of the Amateur Athletic Union.
David A. Matlin 1966 He was the first Jewish president of the Amateur Athletic Union.[37]
Robert Dodd 2011 He stepped down in 2011 following allegations that he had molested young basketball players when he was a coach.[38][39]
Louis Stout 2012
Henry Forrest 2013
Roger Goudy 2014 [40]

Criticism

In the early 1970s, The AAU became the subject of criticism, notably by outspoken track star Steve Prefontaine, over the living conditions for amateur athletes under the AAU, as well as arbitrary rules.[41] Congress adopted the Amateur Sports Act of 1978 in response to such criticisms, effectively removing the organization from any governance role. The AAU now continues as a voluntary organization largely promoting youth sports.

In 2008, The AAU also found itself under scrutiny over privacy of information of athletes. A local news station near the AAU Headquarters found boxes of personal information thrown out in dumpsters, raising questions about the organization's handling of private data.[42]

In 2015, Kobe Bryant strongly criticized the AAU, describing it as "Horrible, terrible AAU basketball. It's stupid. It doesn't teach our kids how to play the game at all so you wind up having players that are big and they bring it up and they do all this fancy crap and they don't know how to post. They don't know the fundamentals of the game. It's stupid."[43] Kobe, who moved to Italy at age 6 because of his father playing basketball there, claims that the AAU has been "treating [amateur basketball players] like cash cows for everyone to profit off of".[43]

In the wake of sexual scandals that hit two US universities, Penn State and Syracuse, involving acts of sexual abuse with children, charges have also reached the AAU in Memphis, Tennessee. through the alleged misconduct of then President Robert W. "Bobby" Dodd.[39]

Women barred

Since at least 1914 the Amateur Athletic Union barred women athletes from competing in events that it sponsored.[44] In 1914 they changed their rules and allowed women to compete in a limited number of swimming events.[45] Just two years later in 1916, they AAU was looking to discontinue their experiment in allowing women at swimming events.[46]

In 1922 the Metropolitan AAU in New York City approved a larger program of sanctioned events for women but still barred them from running events over one-half mile because they were considered too strenuous.[47] The reason given for barring women was that if a woman was allowed to run more than a half-mile they would put their reproductive health at risk.[41][48]

In 1961 the Amateur Athletic Union still prohibited women from competing in road running events and even if organizers broke the rule and allowed a woman to participate, her results would not be counted in the official race results.[48] In 1970 the first New York City Marathon ignored the AAU rules and allowed women in the event even if it meant that their scores would not be official. For the second New York City Marathon in 1971 the AAU allowed women to participate if they started the race 10 minutes before, or 10 minutes after the men, or if they ran a separate but equal course.[41] By 1974 women were becoming more vocal about their restrictions.[49] The Amateur Sports Act of 1978 removed the AAU from setting rules.

References

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  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 William Buckingham "Father Bill" Curtis: Founder of the U.S. Olympic Committee, by Lowell M. Seida (1998)
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  48. ↑ 48.0 48.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  49. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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