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Heartbeat takes you inside the world of the unique Olympic sport of biathlon - a sport that combines the heart-pumping aerobics of cross country skiing combined with the precision element of marksmanship. The US Biathlon podcast brings you close to the athletes to dissect one of the most popularity of Olympic Winter Games sports.
S4 Ep1 - Jack Gierhart
Tom Kelly: [00:00:00] Welcome to Heartbeat, the US Biathlon podcast. I'm your host, Tom Kelly. With me today, Jack Geirhart, the president and CEO of US Biathlon. Jack, welcome to Heartbeat.
Jack Gierhart: [00:00:10] Thanks, Tom. Great to be here. Looking forward to our conversation.
Tom Kelly: [00:00:14] We're recording this in early September. And I know, Jack, when you're involved in a winter sport, summer is a time for a break to a certain extent. But when you get past Labor Day, you start to count the days out to the season. How are you feeling right now as you head into what will be your second year in charge?
Jack Gierhart: [00:00:30] Actually, really, really looking forward to it. The summer, well, you said it, a different routine, we're busy. A lot of training camps. We're actually finishing up our third training camp with the national team up in Lake Placid a lot of time for preparation, So there's never really -- the tempo is different. It's not the World Cup schedule, but we've got plenty of stuff on our plates and, you know, planning for the upcoming season takes a lot of time on everybody's part. And we're really, really excited about what lies ahead.
Tom Kelly: [00:01:06] Jack you joined US Biathlon about a year ago as the interim CEO and have since then been named the president and CEO of the organization. If you could give us a little background on yourself. What was your pathway into Olympic sport like?
Jack Gierhart: [00:01:22] It's probably a little different than others. I started out in sort of the business side and technology. I've always had a passion for sport and my original sport and still is today has been sailing. I was in the sailing industry professionally and then got introduced to the NGB of sailing -- US Sailing -- by a good friend of mine that was on the board. They were looking for some marketing support at one point and I had an opening in my calendar. So I started to spend a little bit of time with us sailing. That turned into a full time position back in the early 2000, and it just sort of developed from there. So I came into the sport through, not through, you know, a from an athlete perspective, but from just a passion for it. And then got involved in the Olympic movement through that NGB and, you know, it's been a great ride. I've experienced, you know, several different sports. And I really there's something about the Olympic movement and these organizations and these communities that are really exciting. There's something new every day.
Tom Kelly: [00:02:39] We're going to talk more about biathlon, but go back to your sailing days. And you also helped USA Fencing for a year, year and a half. But what were some of those things that you took away in working with athletes and working within the Olympic movement, which has this long heritage and these really great ideals?
Jack Gierhart: [00:02:57] Yeah. You know, all these organizations are very different culturally. They all have very similar missions, which is growing the grassroots, bringing new people into the sport and then providing support and, you know, leadership for those athletes at the top of the game. And there's something about that continuum and seeing that evolution of participants of athletes as they go through that. And, you know, I think the thing for me that's the most motivating is you just see this passion at all levels, whether it's the grassroots and the folks and volunteers that are involved at the local level, bringing new people into the sport, to these elite athletes that are so committed and are giving everything to, you know, achieve their dreams of Olympic success and getting to the podium. And just the people that are involved all along that pathway are so committed to the ideals, you know, the sportsmanship, the inclusion, the the commitment to excellence. I think they're all critically important to and you see the impact that they have on society and on, especially on young kids. And you see where sport plays such an important role in the development of our youth.
Tom Kelly: [00:04:28] Let's go back a year ago, Jack, and you had just concluded your term as interim CEO of USA Fencing looking for other opportunities. And when Max Cobb had this amazing offer to go and head the Ibu as its secretary general, he had a lot of heritage and legacy himself here in that role. You got tabbed to be the interim CEO. And let's go back to that first weekend that you spent out in Utah in October at the team's camp. And what were some of your first impressions of U.S biathlon?
Jack Gierhart: [00:05:01] Yeah. So I was obviously very new to the sport. When I let my friends and network know about my new role, they were like, Oh man, I love biathlon. It's the greatest thing to watch. So there's this passion about the sport from people that are totally disconnected, which was a little new to me because in sailing, you know, the only people that were really interested in sailing and certainly watching it on television is not that interesting unless you're unless you're a participant was just this passion and enthusiasm from from a broad range of folks. So that was one thing that hit me. And the second was when I got to Utah, you know, the first thing I did is I introduced myself to the athletes and there was just this positivity and I think enthusiasm on their part for the future and where things were going. And, you know, that was really helpful in welcoming me in as the, you know, the support that the athletes had as I came on board. Being new to the sport and then meeting the people in the community, one of the things that I found really exciting was what I call alignment, you know, all the different. People I talked to, whether it was the coaches or the parents or the athletes, it was, I think, alignment and agreement on where they were going.
Jack Gierhart: [00:06:31] And in a lot of other sports, you have different constituents and different factions and sometimes it's really hard to get agreement on a common goal. And one of the things that stuck out to me right away was there's just this everybody's looking at the same North Star, if you will. And as I said, they might have a focus and a passion on a different part of that pathway there. But there wasn't an argument over whether we should go right or go left. That was where we're going. And the other part was it's a smaller community. And there was a lot of openness and enthusiasm, I think, for new ideas. There wasn't this we've tried that. We can't do that. It doesn't work. It was like I felt even though I was new to the sport, there was a real, I think, welcoming of me coming in, bringing some different perspectives. And there it was, it was almost like there was a clean piece of paper to work from with a lot of people that were looking for how do we grow the sport, how do we achieve these goals? So there was just this sense of unified community that was really, really, like I said, exciting for me and encouraging.
Tom Kelly: [00:07:57] Jack, as you went through the season, did you find that that carried on and you had similar experiences throughout the year?
Jack Gierhart: [00:08:05] Yeah, I really did. I think whether it was, you know, I had the opportunity to, to visit and spectate on a on a World Cup and I went to some local events and there was, you know, everybody was aware and, you know, informed of the pathway and what the different parts of the sport were trying to to do and to accomplish. And there I didn't get different messages from the different communities that I interfaced with. There was always a consistency in what we're trying to do. Here are the things that we think are going to help us be successful. And there was a real openness, I think, to. The involvement of US Biathlon and you know, and a lot of these communities and sports. The governing body is not always held in high regard. It's more of a bureaucracy that creates roadblocks. And that was there was a real interest in, yeah, we need support and you are open and you're listening and you're going to be a really good partner for us. And that was a consistent theme and message across the board. It's like everybody wants to help each other succeed.
Tom Kelly: [00:09:27] You and I shared some time in Antholz last January, which is regarded as one of the most prestigious of the IBU World Cup biathlon events. What were your takeaways in seeing the sport at its highest level in a venue like that with thousands of spectators around me? What did you take away from that opportunity?
Jack Gierhart: [00:09:49] Well, I mean, a couple of things. One was just the energy that's there. And you can see why it is such a popular sport. And, you know, I'm really looking forward to building that fan base and helping build and being part of building that fan base here in the United States. But just the energy that's there and the dynamics of the game is incredible. And it's something that you can touch. And, you know, the sport and the IBU does such a good job of presenting it. They use data really well, so you can understand it quickly. I mean, like I said, coming into the sport for the first time, you know, I caught on pretty quickly to be able to understand it. And I think that's something that's really powerful. The other thing was just the. I think that the positivity of the community and how it was aligned isn't the right word, but it was just together. And so you're sitting watching these athletes come into the range. The stands go quiet. And it doesn't matter if it was a Norwegian or a US athlete or a French or Italian. There was this praise and applause when they hit and there was this sense of awe when they missed. And again, it didn't matter. We were in Italy and you felt the same reaction to any of the athletes coming in.
Jack Gierhart: [00:11:25] And I felt that that unity was really, really powerful. And I thought it was I mean, in some ways beautiful just to see that happen. And you don't you don't see that in a lot. I mean, you don't see that in a lot of sports. And then going out onto the course and just seeing the fans there. I was standing there with my, you know, us biathlon hat on just sort of taking all this in. And this German fan came up to me and didn't speak any English, but he asked me if I wanted to be here and I said, I'm okay. But he said, Your hat, I like your hat. And I said, he said, we're going to trade. And he had a team Germany hat on. And I was like, I'm not going to argue with the guy. He wants to wear the Team USA hat. So we swapped hats and it just that, you know, there's there's this this camaraderie there that I thought was really, really powerful and demonstrated, I think the power of of sport to, you know, go beyond the the geopolitical boundaries that are out there and barriers and really bring it down to a fundamental level of, you know, the love for the for the sport and the and support of the athletes. And that was a really cool experience for me.
Tom Kelly: [00:12:48] You know, you've hit on some really interesting points and it's been my experience as well over the last years that it really is a well aligned community around the world. And it's not. Yeah, there's a lot of nationalism you want to see your team do well, but it really at its root, it's really about the sport and that's what the fans see. That's what gets them pumped.
Jack Gierhart: [00:13:08] Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. And that's, you know, like I said from my my take, that's why it's such a popular, popular sport to watch.
Tom Kelly: [00:13:19] Jack, Any successful organization needs a good plan. And we're going to talk about your strategic plan and the look up to 2030. But first, just to touch on your board right now, you have a very passionate board. You're having a little bit of a transition in leadership right now. But how important is it to have that kind of support behind the scenes to make it all work?
Jack Gierhart: [00:13:40] In these organizations, in the NGB community, the Olympic movement, it's critical. It's one of the critical components are sort of puzzle pieces, if you will, in making these organizations run smoothly. Is having a board that's passionate, knowledgeable, that brings in a wide range of expertise and experience and connections. You know, these are all volunteers that are doing this for their love of the sport, for the love of the Olympic movement. And, you know, we're really lucky in our board -- 14 members, five athletes that are either active and competing or retired. But they bring in a great perspective. You know, one of the really important things in running an organization like this is having resources. And the board is critical in helping build the resource base for us. And just, you know, the thing that I found with our board, with Bob Hall and our vice chair, Rachel and others, is that we're partners. And, you know, we all know what our strengths are and they're part of the team, but they also know what their role is. And I think that's an area where some boards and some organizations get a little crossways is when, you know, a board doesn't know what their lane is and they get involved in the day to day management of stuff as opposed to supporting the management team. And our board certainly knows their role and they do a phenomenal job in supporting me and supporting the staff, supporting the athletes. And I think it's a really good mix. And I think of all the organizations that I've worked at, this has got to be one of the best, best boards that I've had the pleasure of in honor of working with.
Tom Kelly: [00:15:46] Let's talk about your strategic plan. And this actually the origin of it predates you and you've inherited it and you have enhanced it this year together with your leadership team. But tell us a little bit about that plan and your objectives looking out to 2030.
Jack Gierhart: [00:16:02] So, yeah, thanks. When I came on board, one of the things that got me really excited was the 2030 plan. And I've been involved in three sports in developing multiple strategic plans. And the thing that stuck out to me about our 2030 plan is sort of the conciseness of it. The feasibility of it. It wasn't this, you know, long, multi-page document that had all these big assumptions and broad goals. I mean, it was really clear and there's four components to it as it's building the base, it's development and developing athletes and then a world class high performance plan and then that all being encased in an organization that is, you know, committed to excellence, to high quality, to incredible customer and member service. And those all come together and it makes a really, really tight, understandable strategy going forward. And, you know, again, the it it was. Developed with the input from the community and you can tell that. And so there's a lot of buy in from it. There aren't any areas, I think that that don't make sense. And as we've put it into place, it's and put it into action. It's easy to focus. I think one of the things in these roles is you have to be focused and it's so easy to get distracted because there's so many elements and constituents that are out there that, you know, the biggest challenge is remaining focused. And this plan really helps us do that. It's concise. Grassroots development, supporting the club's athlete, recruitment, junior development, you know, leveraging some of the work that's already being done out there in the cross-country communities and then building on the high performance program that we have and leveraging, you know, the resources and the support and the expertise from the OPC. And then the US Olympic Committee and Paralympic Committee also helps us from an organizational excellence perspective. And, you know, being able to run an organization so that people have confidence in it, that there's transparency, that there's good communication, those are all critical to our success.
Tom Kelly: [00:18:40] You mentioned this earlier, but athlete input into a plan like this is really important. Lowell Bailey, on your team, certainly has been in the lead in putting this plan together. But how did you go about getting athlete input and and is there a good feeling amongst the athletes that they really have had a real say in developing this plan to 2030?
Jack Gierhart: [00:19:01] So I can't speak to the origins of the plan, although I know that there were multiple constituents involved. I will say, you know, with the five athletes that we have on the board and as we go through our strategic plan review and assessment and, you know, refinement, they are a really important voice on that. And, you know, we I there's there's several athletes that are on the board that I'm in, you know, pretty frequent contact with that I'm I feel really good that they're comfortable reaching out to me with questions and, you know, sort of probing into some areas how can we do this better? Giving me some good suggestions. So there's very much I think an important part of that is really an open dialogue with the athletes and a good communication channel and transparency on what we're doing. And, you know, that's always, as you work with the athletes, that's always been a, you know, a concern is how the organization is conveying and communicating where where it's going and its thought process. And, you know, this idea of trust is really important. And I think, you know, my goal is to focus on that every day. And, you know, I look forward to getting together with the athletes. I'm going to be meeting with them tomorrow and spending some time with them in Lake Placid. And, you know, I just listen and they've got you know, from their perspective, they've got some really good insight into what we can do to be better. And we need to take that into account as we make our decisions going forward. And they're a huge part of that.
Tom Kelly: [00:20:44] We're going to take a short break and we'll come back in just a moment here on Heartbeat with Jack Gerhardt.
Tom Kelly: [00:20:52] And we're back on Heartbeat with Jack Gerhart, the president and CEO of US Biathlon. And it was fun hearing about the plan, Jack. And I urge everyone to check it out and see where US Biathlon is headed up on the road to 2030. Let's talk a little bit about the athletic success last year and where we're heading. And I think just to set the stage over the last year or so, there's been a couple of notable retirements and Susan Dunklee and Clare Egan, and I know that you're working to build that back up, but what were some of the highlights in your mind from last year and some of your thoughts going into this season?
Jack Gierhart: [00:21:29] So, you know, last year was an interesting season, really the first full one coming out of Covid. And there was a lot of adaptation to, you know, getting back to the program as it had been. We know, unfortunately, a lot of the athletes and this was across the board in the whole community were dealing with some illnesses and health issues. But we got our hands around that and it's something we learned from last year. So there were some challenges there. I think, you know, we did have personal bests and some great performances really across the board from our athletes, both the veterans and as well as some of the up and coming, especially the men on on the on our on the team you know highlighted I think was not necessarily on the on the World Cup but what happened at the youth and junior worlds with with Maxime capturing a bronze and then Campbell Wright who was actually competing for New Zealand but is now going to be part of the US biathlon team winning gold. So we've got some great, great talent, young talent on the men's side. There's Fashek and Vincent also as well. Bjorn Westervelt did a phenomenal job at the Winter University Games.
Jack Gierhart: [00:22:56] And so we've got a really strong core young men's team that's up and coming. And on the women's side, as you mentioned, we had some notable retirements of some really true, incredible athletes and Clare and Susan. But, you know, we have Deidra, we have Chloe, Joanne, we've got some great women on the team that are providing great inspiration for the up and coming athletes and women. We're investing in our Project X, which is, you know, the recruitment of some top talent on the cross-country side. We saw some early success of that in, in athletes like Margie Friede coming on board and getting out onto the IBU Cup tour. So these are our men's and women's team are sort of in different cycles of an evolution, but there's really strong ingredients on both of them. And I think this is going to be a great season to see some of this really fall into place with, you know, with Campbell and all these young athletes pushing each other and then the development and the rise of some of the new women coming into the team and into the sport. We're we're we're really excited about that.
Tom Kelly: [00:24:13] Jack, can you update us on the process with Campbell right in making that transition from New Zealand to the USA? I believe it's been approved by the IBU, but give us an update on where that stands.
Jack Gierhart: [00:24:25] Yeah, there are multiple levels here. There's the National Federation level that needs to sort of initiate it and approve it. Then there's the International federation that has to get behind it and approve it. Then the National Olympic Committee. So the Usopc and then the Olympic the New Zealand Olympic Committee has to approve it and then it gets the final sign off by the IOC. So right now, everybody has signed off on it and it is waiting for basically a rubber stamp at the IOC executive board level, which I just learned today, would be reviewing it on October 14th. So it keeps getting pushed out. And and but from what we understand, you know, all the critical parties have approved it and we're looking forward to moving on. I will say we're really appreciative of the support that the new New Zealand biathlon has provided. You know, Mac or Campbell was an incredible athlete that rose up in their ranks. And, you know, they did a great job in supporting him through his career and saw that there was an incredible opportunity for him to join the US Biathlon Team and we're really excited to see him succeed going forward and, you know, in some ways certainly represent Team USA. But he'll always have a, I think, a heart in New Zealand as well.
Tom Kelly: [00:26:05] Yeah, it was interesting to read the news coverage down in New Zealand this summer. I mean, it was a really big deal. So welcome to the team, Campbell. You've talked a little bit here, Jack, about sport growth. And one of the things that most fascinates me are the steps that US Biathlon is taking to really grow the sport, looking to recruit athletes, looking for advancement in club programs. Give us a little overview of the programs and in particular that John Farra is managing to really help to grow the sport up from the grass roots.
Jack Gierhart: [00:26:36] John joined basically the same time I did. I think his first day and my first day were at a board meeting in September last September. But Max had recruited John to come in and really he's the first person in an official role of sport development. And his role is a bit broad. It's supporting the grass roots and the clubs. As you mentioned, he spent a good deal of last season on the road visiting clubs throughout the country, you know, picking up targets at one place and delivering them to another. We received ten laser rifles from the IBU for a biathlon program that he ended up, you know, delivering across the country. I think we put about a thousand young athletes through a tri biathlon program and we're going to be doubling that this year. So John's in charge of that, really that grass roots fertilizing the base. But as you know, he comes from the Nordic from the cross country background. Being an Olympian himself, knows that cross-country community really well and has spent a lot of time developing a collaborative relationship with the coaches in that community and getting to know the athletes in the cross-country community. So that's really where our our Project X program is, which is about, you know, introducing the cross-country community into biathlon and doing it in a way that is additive as opposed to, you know, win lose type of situation, because we feel that there's, you know, to be a successful biathlete, you have to be a great cross-country skier.
Jack Gierhart: [00:28:24] And we want to make sure and introduce this opportunity to as many of those athletes as possible. And, you know, John, John has a way about him. He's he's the pied piper for us and has has an incredible relationship and really, really well respected in that community. And, you know, that's what's helped us meet some of these, especially some of these young women on the on the Project X program. And, you know, we feel that there's a real opportunity in it. And it's a win win for for biathlon, for cross country as well by opening up, you know, the 33 medals that are available in biathlon to this broader community. And, you know, we're and we're doing it in a way that is really going to the athletes and trying to work with them in a in a way that allows them to still continue to pursue their goals that might be in whether they're skiing in college or have goals to do a cross-country World Cup. We want to try to support them in the way that's going to help them, you know, excel and achieve their goals.
Tom Kelly: [00:29:33] One of the things that has really struck me and you've touched on this is you've really seen acceptance from the cross-country community in working in a collaborative way on this.
Jack Gierhart: [00:29:46] Yeah, I think you're right. There's, you know, still there's the the goal of, you know, excellence in that sport. I think John's approach of, hey, let me tell you what we're doing. Let me explain what the opportunities are. Let me show you how we're working and we're going to be transparent in what we're doing. I think that's been really well received. And, you know, it's happening at all levels of our sport as well as in the cross-country community. You know, John's working with the coaches and the athletes. Tim and Lowell are working with their counterparts on the high performance side. And, you know, I've had some great discussions with, you know, the leadership at ski and snowboard about how can we collaborate together to, you know, both move forward. And then the Usopc is very in tune with, you know, the benefits of collaboration across winter sports. And they've been a big supporter of bringing all the winter NGBs together. There to explore ways that we can collaborate and work together and leverage each other's expertise and resources. And, you know, this is one of those things where you got to take it a step at a time and show that there's going to be benefits and wins on both sides. And I think biathlon is in a great place to contribute to that, that approach. And, you know, it's a great attractive opportunity for additional pathway, if you will, for folks in the cross-country community.
Tom Kelly: [00:31:25] Jack, let's talk about the national footprint of biathlon and one of the projects that you've been embarking on over the last few months is to look at expanding your footprint in the West and tell us a little bit about the announcement you've just come out with this month relative to Utah.
Jack Gierhart: [00:31:43] Yeah, we're really excited about that. So the administrative office for biathlon has been in Maine, and that's established, I think 15 or 18 years ago as we as the organization worked to expand biathlon and venues here in Maine. There was a lot of sort of local and state support for that and, you know, resulting in the venue and up at Fort Kent. And, you know, that that's been quite successful up there. We've got our nationals are going to be there this coming March. But as we're seeing the growth of biathlon, we're seeing a lot of activity out west. You know, we've got Crosscut, which is up in Bozeman. We've got the new facility in Brillion, Wisconsin, the Arien's Nordic Center. There's obviously the great work that's being done in Soldier Hollow. And as we sort of evaluated where we would be most effective in developing and supporting the grassroots of the sport, we felt that, you know, having a presence out West and developing relationships with the communities out there was going to be the most effective. And, you know, we evaluated a couple of great, great venues, locations, Lake Placid and Bozeman. And we felt that, you know, we've been very, very centric here in the Northeast. And we felt expanding our presence out west was going to be basically a win win win for everybody. It's going to be helpful in growing the sport.
Jack Gierhart: [00:33:25] It's going to be helpful in promoting our communities out there, providing additional venues and resources for athletes to train. You know, we think a partnership with the Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation and Soldier Hollow is going to be really powerful. And there's a lot of opportunity out there. And just building momentum and strength out there is only going to help what's going to happen in Lake Placid or Brillion or Alaska or Bozeman. And, you know, we're really excited about it. There's a great community out there that's really excited to have us come. The community and the folks up in Lake Placid are still critical. That's the, you know, the home of the national team there and where we do all our training in the summer. That's not going to change. We feel, if anything, we're going to be able to sort of the growing presence of biathlon, we're going to be able to get more events here. Next we have to put bids in for the next quad for World Cup and IBU Cup. And I think with, you know, a stronger presence out West plus our presence in Lake Placid, we're going to have a lot more success in bringing some more events here. So I think it's going to be a really good benefit for the entire sport.
Tom Kelly: [00:34:47] Speaking of events, you have a World Cup coming this year in Soldier Hollow, right?
Jack Gierhart: [00:34:52] We do. We're really excited about that. The eighth through the 10th of March. The world will be coming to our playground. And, you know, from what I understand, the event in 2019 was a big success. The athletes really enjoy coming to the United States. And I'm excited. You know, we have ongoing calls and we're part of the organizing committee in Utah. And it's going to be it's going to be great to have have our our office there newly established plus welcome the world to to soldier Hollow and and then from there they'll they'll go on to to Canmore up in Canada. So we think it's going to be a great end to the sort of cap for the season for biathlon and and you know, with some promotion and marketing. We're excited to bring more and more fans there and yeah, use it as an opportunity to really showcase this this incredible sport.
Tom Kelly: [00:35:57] It's been exciting out here in Utah to see biathlon in the last few years. We had the pair of cross-country and biathlon World Cup last year, Youth and Junior Worlds, the year before that, and back in 4 or 5 years ago, we had the World Cup here. I want to go back, though, and touch on Ariens, which is one of your biggest sponsors. And I don't think we can say enough about what this partner has brought in. A lot of partners. They'll write you a check. They'll get their brand up there. But this is a partner that's really engaged in the sport. Tell us a little bit more about the center that they've opened at their headquarters in Wisconsin.
Jack Gierhart: [00:36:34] Yeah, I think they fell in love with the culture and saw the natural fit of biathlon with, you know, their business, their values and extending this relationship beyond, just, as you said, a sponsorship and a partnership. But to their they're looking at how biathlon and cross-country skiing can enhance their overall community. You know, brilliant. And where Ariens is an outside suburb about an hour I guess from Green Bay. They have the largest employer there. And they're, you know, the the CEO of the organization, Dan Ariens, is, you know, really visionary and trying to think about how to build a really strong, interconnected community and saw, you know, like a lot of people see sport as a as a really incredible way of doing that. And they built this phenomenal venue at the Arien's Nordic Park with, you know, a 20 point range and great ski, cross-country paved tracks and an incredible lodge and they're really investing in the sport. And it was I was honored to be part of a trip. They went up and visited Dick and Judy in Craftsbury just to see, you know, what they've done up there with their incredible, incredible program and venue and just to learn from that. And I think they, you know, we spent a day with them walking around and they had the opportunity to pick pick everybody's brains and take those lessons back and see how they could apply them in Brillion.
Jack Gierhart: [00:38:19] And, you know, they're very, very open minded about how to go about and do it. How can they learn from the stuff that's already been done? How can they learn from the community? And, you know, they're going to put their spin on it and their flavor, which is exactly what they need to do. But, you know, it reminds me of the field of dreams. You know, build it and they'll come. And that's certainly what's happening there, where they're using it for all sorts of different events. And but, you know, integral to all of them is cross-country skiing and biathlon. And it's a real I'm headed out there for a CEO event that Dan Ariens is hosting which should be really exciting. And you know, he brings his connection to the Green Bay Packers and professional sports in and it's just this really wonderful melding of, you know, people passionate about sport and, you know, getting behind us biathlon the US Biathlon team and Team USA.
Tom Kelly: [00:39:20] Being a Wisconsin native myself, I completely get what they're doing. And Dan is really an amazing leader. Have you been to a Packer game yet?
Jack Gierhart: [00:39:29] I have not yet, but I'm going on the 20th or is it the 24th I think of this month. So I'm looking forward to that.
Tom Kelly: [00:39:38] Oh, that'll be a great experience. I have one more serious question and then we'll get into some fun stuff to close. But just kind of looking back on what we talked about with the 2030 plan, a simple question that really probably needs a lot of deep thought to it, but what's possible for us? Biathlon? What's possible.
Jack Gierhart: [00:39:56] Well, I think, you know, in my role in the team here, I think the sky is the limit for us. You know, we have passion. We have the athletic base in, you know, in winter sport. And we just have to remain focused. I think the opportunities for, you know, as we stated in our 2030 plan, we have a goal of an Olympic medal in 2026. Um, it's the last first medal for Winter Olympics, which is a really compelling and exciting goal. And we we're getting our donor community and our sponsors and really our fan base really excited about that. It's something you can really, you know, sink your teeth into. And I truly believe that that's possible. And I think our, our staff, our coaches, our high performance team all do as well. It's not going to come easy. We've got to support the athletes and they're they're committed to it. We've got the ingredients. And, you know, but as with sport, there's always these unknowns and we got to just keep pushing. So I think that's, you know, that part of our our plan is clear. The pathway is there. We know what we need to do. You know, we've done a lot of research on where athletes are in their careers when they become a first time Olympian, when they become a first time medalist. And we have athletes that are on that pathway and we believe that we can achieve that. You know, at the other end, the grass roots side of things, the expansion of the sport, you know, our membership is growing 10 to 12% a year. There there's a lot of interest in expanding Nordic clubs into offering biathlon opportunities. So there's a lot of interest at the grassroots level for.
Jack Gierhart: [00:42:12] Access to biathlon. And we talked about John earlier, but having somebody like him out in that role and supporting clubs as they look to grow their programming, supporting, you know, new clubs coming online, you know, I don't think we're going to see an errands Nordic center pop up every year. But I think we will see, you know, communities that want to transition, you know, successful cross country and Nordic programs into including biathlon. And that's really what we want to do. It's about, I think, quality over quantity. You know, some of the metrics we've considered in our 2030 plan is, you know, do we want to grow our base of biathlon clubs by X? And yeah, we certainly want to provide and grow access, but I think it's more important that we do it in a high quality and focused manner that provides incredible experiences. You know, one of the key things that's really important and underlying the success of our plan is expanding coaching. And that's something that's one of the other elements that John is working on. We're putting our coaching courses online into a new, easily accessible platform, which is going to be really helpful. So investing in coaching, investing in women coaching is really important. And that's one of those sort of critical success factors is if we're going to grow the sport and grow the base, we've got to have the mentors there to do that. And, you know, we're we're we're spending a lot of time and that's, again, a quality issue. And we want to make sure that we're bringing in, you know, good people, giving them good skills and putting them in the right places.
Tom Kelly: [00:43:59] Well, it's going to be a fun ride. And we want to close out this podcast, as we always do on Heartbeat with our On Target section. A few, hopefully simple questions for you to learn a little bit more about you, Jack and to kick it off. And I know this is probably going to be a tough one for you. What's your favorite sport personally that you love to engage in?
Jack Gierhart: [00:44:18] So can I pick one for summer and winter?
Tom Kelly: [00:44:21] I know you were going to do that, so. Yeah, do it.
Jack Gierhart: [00:44:24] So I'll always have an incredible love for sailing so that that doesn't go away. But I also really enjoy backcountry skiing. And I've always been a big alpine skier, and I picked up ski touring about five years ago and I really enjoy that. So that gets me a little bit into the cross-country community. Not exactly, but that's where I like to spend my time in the winter.
Tom Kelly: [00:44:50] Did you get out at Anholtz last year?
Jack Gierhart: [00:44:52] I did. I actually brought my boots and one morning I went up. Passed over the lake and up into the pass over into Austria to look out over there and then back down. So I did get up, took advantage of that.
Tom Kelly: [00:45:06] Jack, you've been involved in Olympic sport for about two decades now. It's been a long time. Is there one memory that you can think back on early in your career that kind of triggered the thought in you that, yeah, I want to be involved in Olympic sport?
Jack Gierhart: [00:45:20] Yeah, I think there's a couple of things and they touch on the bookends of sort of the responsibilities of the Olympic movement. I had just started I'd been at US Sailing for a couple of years. And you know, one thing about us sailing is that it's a really a broad organization with a lot of programming on the grassroots sport development side and a very small or much more focused component on the Olympic elite side. But in the 2004 games in Athens, we had 470 men's teams that were sort of in the last race. And the crew on the boat was a guy named Kevin Burnham, and he was 45 years old and he and his skipper were up against, I think it was the Brits. And they had to they could finish anywhere in the fleet, but they had to be in front of the Brits and they had this incredible tacking duel back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. And this guy is twice the age of his competitors. And he just the determination and the grit was really impressive. And that to me, was something that stuck with me. The guy is incredible, incredible athlete. And just his determination to see that through and the inspiration that that gave to the the youth side of sailing was phenomenal.
Jack Gierhart: [00:46:57] So that was one one element. So on the, the inspiration, the pathway, you know, you put your mind to it, what you can accomplish was was really powerful. And the second piece was one of the programs we developed at at us sailing was, was at the other end of the spectrum was really around sport development and using sport to inspire kids to be excited about learning. And I worked with a donor out in California named Jim Kilroy, who just had this vision of investing in, you know, at risk youth and using sport to inspire them to learn and to get into stem stem careers. And just seeing some of these the impact that this program had on bringing kids a into the sport and then seeing them as some of them transitioned through high school and into college. And the success they had again, was another example of the power of sport. And I think those two elements really to me cemented, you know, this is a great place to work because you can have an incredible impact on, you know, I think society in general.
Tom Kelly: [00:48:16] I'm going to close it out with a question I often ask, and it tends to be the toughest one. You've got one year under your belt now, but if you look at biathlon, how would you describe it in just one word? Describe biathlon in just one word.
Jack Gierhart: [00:48:38] You know, something comes to me as just hope. I think that we here in the US, there's an incredible opportunity for us and the future is really bright. And I don't I look at it in the sort of the world that we're living in, and there's just so much positivity around what we're doing. And I guess, yeah, hope and inspiration is sort of what hits me about it right now. I'll take that.
Tom Kelly: [00:49:07] One. No, it doesn't. I'll take it one step forward. It's belief. You know, it's it's more than hope. It's even belief. Jack Gierhart, thank you so much for taking time to talk to us on Heartbeat. We look forward to the coming season and taking us up to 2030.
Jack Gierhart: [00:49:22] Thank you, Tom. It's been a great conversation. Really enjoyed it and looking forward to this next season and beyond.