USA Volleyball CEO Jamie Davis, who introduced that he’ll depart that submit after the Paris Olympics, is the main candidate to fill the identical function for USA Water Polo.
A USA Water Polo supply confirmed for VolleyballMag that Davis is a powerful favourite to take over that governing physique. Chris Ramsey, the present CEO of USA Water Polo, introduced in December that he’ll retire after the Olympics. Davis, in flip, introduced that he’s leaving his submit this previous March after seven years. Learn that story right here:
Davis’ USA Volleyball contract runs via the tip of 2024. Efforts to contact Davis have been unsuccessful.
Davis has no prior relationship with water polo, however didn’t have one with volleyball, both, when he was employed in 2017 to exchange Doug Beal. Because the CEO of a nationwide governing physique, Davis brings expertise coping with the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee, Worldwide Olympic Committee and the politics of worldwide sports activities.
“Ramsey did play water polo in faculty, however he has all the time been perceived as an outsider amongst this nation’s passionate supporters of water polo,” four-time USA Olympian Ryan Bailey instructed Swimming World. ” Will there be a backlash if one other outsider — Jamie Davis has no prior expertise with water polo — will get the highest job overseeing the game in America?
We did an prolonged Q&A with Davis in July 2022 at Volleyball Nations League in Bossier Metropolis, Louisiana, a 12 months after the USA ladies received gold medals in ladies’s indoors, ladies’s seaside and ladies’s sitting:
That is our full story from January 4, 2017, when Davis was employed:
USA Volleyball has gone exterior the game for its new chief.
The nationwide governing physique introduced Tuesday morning that Jamie Davis, sports activities media, advertising and marketing and enterprise government, as its new CEO of USA Volleyball.
“I like a problem and I like rising organizations,” Davis stated Wednesday morning from Los Angeles. “I’m very entrepreneurial. I’ve launched tv networks in my profession. So I believe entrepreneurially. Which implies being scrappy and making do with what you might have and preventing to win in any respect prices. As a result of that’s my mindset I like taking a company that I believe has large potential and seeing faucet that potential and actually let it develop.
“And that was essentially the most engaging factor to me.”
Davis, 50, grew up in Glencoe, Unwell., close to Chicago. He’s a graduate of Colgate College and has an MBA from New York College. His resume contains serving to launch the NFL and NHL on Fox after which spending 12 years in Asia for Information Company the place his jobs included launching new networks and operating channels. He was president of Information Corp China.
“I believe that is going to be thrilling, it’s going to be difficult and I believe it’s going to be a hell of lots of enjoyable,” Davis stated.
He ran cross nation and monitor in highschool and likewise wrestled and admits to being a volleyball neophyte.
“When the board approached me, I used to be the primary to say I’m not from a volleyball background,” Davis stated. “They have been very clear to clarify to me that’s not essentially what we’re searching for on this function. We’re searching for somebody in a sports activities enterprise advertising and marketing background who can take our sport to the following stage.
“And that was very intriguing to me. I noticed lots of alternatives to take a unique method or come at this with a contemporary set of eyes and take what’s already a really stable base and attempt to develop it. I’m all about attempting to develop participation and membership.
Davis and his spouse of twenty-two years, Annie, have three youngsters, 19-year-old Amber, 18-year-old Jonathan and Andrew, who’s 16.
“I’m actually happy to welcome Jamie Davis to USA Volleyball. He’s an amazing asset for us transferring ahead and he’s going to take us into new areas of enterprise on a world stage in sports activities,” USA Volleyball board of administrators chair Lori Okimura stated.
Davis went to L.A. Tuesday to satisfy with Okimura and others in USA Volleyball earlier than heading later this week to the group’s headquarters in Colorado Springs, the place he’ll be transferring from Philadelphia.
He was set to satisfy with USA ladies’s coach Karch Kiraly on Wednesday. USA males’s coach John Speraw is at a event at Ohio State along with his UCLA group. Davis additionally stated he plans to finally meet with representatives of all USA Volleyball areas.
“I wish to work carefully with them so we perceive their wants higher all with the aim of rising the participation within the sport and making it the game of selection for our youth,” Davis stated. “Proper now, on day two, I’d let you know I’m in that analysis stage. My aim is to try this fairly rapidly.”
Okimura was excited to have Davis on board.
“We used a CEO search committee comprised of many board members and outdoors notables after which labored immediately with an government search agency. Jamie stood out from all of the candidates primarily due to the depth of his enterprise expertise,” Okimura stated.
“He’s somebody who’s already been a chief government on many ranges. He’s somebody who’s achieved enterprise globally, primarily in key markets, Asia, Europe, america, all markets that the game of volleyball is seeking to be extra saturated in.
“And his character, fairly frankly. Excessive power, very environment friendly thinker and he confirmed lots of ardour for volleyball for somebody who comes from exterior our small group and our world.”
Based on USA Volleyball, Davis turns into the seventh CEO of USA Volleyball and the primary to return from exterior the prevailing USA Volleyball lay management. He replaces Doug Beal, the previous nice participant who coached the USA males to the 1984 Olympic gold medal. Beal was the CEO final 12 years.
Davis based his personal firm, Jomadrew Sports activities and Leisure, LLC, after main Fanatics, Inc., the world’s largest on-line retailer of formally licensed sports activities merchandise.
He beforehand was the president of the TV community Versus (now the NBC Sports activities Community), together with a number of roles inside Information Company similar to president of China and managing director of ESPN STAR Sports activities.
“He’s from the skilled world of sports activities on many ranges, e-commerce, know-how, primarily with broadcast media,” Okimura stated. “Whereas he isn’t a former volleyball participant or coach, he’s very aware of the game from the industrial facet of issues. So he sees us with a really completely different lens and sees lots of potential in USA Volleyball specifically. He sees lots of areas through which we are able to broaden our attain.
“He’s very inquisitive about working with the 40 areas to strengthen some enterprise alternatives that we’ve collectively on the nationwide stage but additionally to strive some alternatives that is likely to be related domestically. He’s an enormous thinker.”
