(00:00:00) You're a lot of folks are thinking about what's going to happen in Seoul South Korea come to September and the 1988 Summer Olympic Games, but got a fellow in the studio with me this afternoon whose thoughts are maybe more a couple years down the line to 1990 when the United States Olympic Festival comes to the Twin Cities in the Minneapolis st. Paul area. His name is Jack Kelly and he was recently hired as the general manager and president and chief pooh-bah the 1990 US Olympic Festival. We're going to talk about what's entailed with the festival where it's going to be what it's going to be and how things are going to happen over the next two years. And the phone number to call for your questions about that is 2276 thousand here on sport folio. Jack you've got the funniest sounding Houston acts and I've ever heard just because you come from Houston last doesn't mean you grew up. There doesn't know been 14 years in Houston, but I was raised in Boston and I'm afraid you can never get the Boston out of the actual devout Red Sox. Oh, that's that's kind of unfortunate. We're not going to talk about the Red Sox here because that's really a very sore subject around here that series at Fenway Park was most difficult but we'll drop that. Well, Jack is nice to have you in the Twin Cities as the which one of those titles is your title. It's a president and executive director. But as long as people buy tickets, they can call me about anything the boss of the u.s. Olympic Festival. I'll ask the obvious question. Why are you here in 1988 when this Festival doesn't happen till 1990. It really takes at least 2 years to put together and we've got to select and set up and create 36 competition venues. We've got to sell tickets. We've got to put together mark. Plan, we've got to feel create the details behind the torch run on the opening ceremonies and it really takes two years. In fact, we'll be bringing some other staff on in the next several months. Really. When did you start here about six weeks ago. Hmm. And this will now be your full-time permanent complete all-encompassing job for the next two years, right? And it gets to be at some point a six day a week job and in the final nine or ten months of becomes a seven day a week job. So then you that you do take home with you and think about the 24 hours a day. Now, you know what you're talking about here because you ran the 1986 Olympic Festival in Houston. That's right. It was worn by the company. I was working for that time Tena. Koe Incorporated to be the executive director in Houston and came back after it was over and it was a successful Fest. I think the whole cities came in behind it and it was a lot of fun and I realized after about a year and a half back with Tena. Koe that I enjoyed most things more than I enjoyed the big in the corporate world. Uh-huh. I have a chance to try another one and you know make up for the mistakes. I made the first time did you actually start with about the same amount of lead time in Houston actually? Leslie time we started we open it office March 1st 1985 which gave us at that time about 17 months. And at that time it was the most lead time anybody it had and we thought what a tremendous amount of time and then as we got into it, we realized my God. This is it takes almost 2 years and from that point forward people start to take about two years to put one together. In fact, the people in La for that are putting together 1991 Festival are already starting to rent space and look for some staff. No kidding and then Oklahoma City in 1989 that are in full swing that they've got a staff of 30 or 40 people and lots of volunteers and you know, they're really a lot of their decisions are already made their in the point of putting the final touches on some things. And of course, that's a especially for a place like Oklahoma City is a real big deal. I mean, they're not in the professional sports Spotlight. That's also I guess what the Oklahoma Centennial next year too. So this is I mean, this is a real major celebration and event for them. They're selling it as the the biggest event in their Centennial year Statewide get everybody behind something kind of event the Interestingly the festival is kind of in recent years been bounced back and forth between Houston's and Minneapolis has and you know and Oklahoma City's and Baton rouge's and North Carolina. So it's had some big city exposure and some small town exposure and the event can be held well in both places, but it sure gets a lot more attention in those small towns in the smaller cities. It becomes the big sports news. Right right down Oklahoma City, they've got minor league baseball in the Olympic Festival where we have no kids getting ready for the North Stars and getting ready for the Vikings and the twins are hot and that gets a lot of coverage so we won't get as much percentage coverage in the newspapers and some media is it doesn't Oklahoma City. I know we have listeners who have never heard of the u.s. Olympic Festival. I know we have others who've heard of it and and can't quite get a grip on what it is. So let's define it here. It's basically amateur competition for the same type of athletes who are eligible for the Olympic Games because it was started in 1978 Bob Kane who is the present of the u.s. Olympic Committee that time looked at the Soviets part a key and the East German games and the Chinese National games and said, we in America needs something where we can get all of our Sports together in one site. So At the experience of multi-sport competition Olympic Village living, you know, Gala Opening Ceremonies those sort of things and he started something called the national sports festival in 1978 and it had about 20 Sports and a thousand athletes and opening ceremonies was in a city park and they had to be a thousand athletes, March 2 and they had some folding chairs and set up a portable Podium and had a couple of speeches in that was it where was this now in Colorado Springs, which is the home of the u.s. Olympic Committee and most of the athletes were already trained that they didn't bring anybody in it was just take the ones over there. Let's try to have a multi-sport competition in 1979. They about double the size about two thousand athletes and that it's six Sports and they chose the 1980 hockey team the one that we're all so familiar with was chosen at the festival, which was also Colorado Springs in Colorado Springs, and they had kind of planned to keep it there and then in 80 when we didn't go to the Olympics in Moscow. Somebody said Tucci we need to write make our event bigger because can be eight years between true multi-sport competition for many of our athletes. So they said let's move it around the country expand it make it bigger and and see what we can do with. Second they moved to Syracuse in 1981 because they had the Empire State Games and one of the first state games operations United States and they had an infrastructure that was at least in some part and it was okay, but they only they took about four months to get it ready. Then they in 82 they moved it Indianapolis, which is you know has been for several years ago amateur sports capital of the u.s. And Indianapolis did a real good job of the national sports festival and 83 was supposed to be a trial for the Olympics and they're going to have it in LA and try a lot of the facilities and see how they worked. They had some problem getting some of the facilities where they sold about six months ago. They moved it back to Colorado Springs and it was a problem for the what okay, but it lost some of that momentum it had been building and it was still about that same size 26 27 Sports in the quadrennium 85 86 87 and it's held in all years except Olympic years. Okay, they decided to try an experiment when the tristate Capital Baton Rouge major city Houston and try a Statewide operation like North Carolina and see which one's worked and so that they'll quadrant were just coming out. There's been a bit of an experimental year, but it's grown now. It's 36 Sports 40 250 participants all the Summer Olympic sports 3 Winter Olympic sports. And as we talked about before the other Pan Am Games sports and Olympic demonstration Sports. All the major athletes have been in the Fest. I think 89% of the LA medals were won by people who had been in Festival previously. We saw last weekend Jackie Joyner break the heptathlon Record She set the record in Houston. We saw Ben Johnson last year break the world hundred meter dash record. The record of been said in the 83 Festival. It has the top quality athletes the best archers Pace in McKinney and has the best track and field Greg Louganis has been in every Festival that type of athlete will be here and we're just going to spread it around the Twin Cities area and pick some venues and open the (00:07:26) doors. What's interesting is I guess there will be more Sports under one umbrella in the Olympic Festival than there are in any other multi-sport games where you've got more than the Summer Olympics Sports by about The Summer Olympics (00:07:38) has between 24 and 26 depending on how many demonstrations they spoil Sports. They have it. We're going to have 36 and that really squeezes your venues that have that many extra Sports. You just got to find that many more field houses and other facilities that you can run a first-class event in but this is a tremendous location for venues. We've got all the colleges in the McCallister's and st. Thomas st. Catherine's in the Hamlin's and U of M's and the each city has its own facilities st. Paul Civic Center and then the, you know the Metrodome and you know, the Met Center there's probably no City or area in the United States that has as many quality facilities as the Twin Cities area. Hmm. (00:08:13) Jack Kelly is our guest here on sport folio. He's the president of the 1990 US Olympic Festival to be held in the Twin Cities. It's 11 minutes after 12 o'clock. You're listening to ksjn 1330. I'm J.G. Preston. The phone is ringing. Feel free to call if you have questions for Jack Kelly 2276 thousand is our phone. Number two, two seven six thousand Jack is you sit and look over sites and venues for the events and 92 does the Metrodome figure into your equation for anything or the I'd like to be able to book it for (00:08:38) what we're going to use it for opening ceremonies and we'll have a Gala Opening Ceremonies with national entertainment in the athlete March and the torch kind of special torch in a reception in the dolman. It'll be quite a show and that's scheduled for the night of July 6th. In fact, the event is the total of n is July 6 to the 15th and 1990. Okay, what people to mark their (00:08:57) calendars now, maybe we won't have tickets right for sale wanted to kind of block out and not be out of town and (00:09:02) pretty time but the Metrodome will be used for an opening ceremonies and then we will we'll look at the metronome for other facility, but it's a very expensive facility normal route after some of the others and with so many events going on at the same time. We're not going to sell 56,000 take its turn to many events and we want to showcase the whole range of facilities. Not just a metronome. Although it's it'll be a great sight for opening (00:09:24) ceremony. Will there be closing ceremonies at the Dome to (00:09:26) know the event the athletes many of my I know they arranged we have the typically go home after their events are done. So what only about half the athletes are left in town. There's not a major, but we will probably tracking It will be the last night will have track and field the last three nights of the festival and will probably write a closing ceremonies at track and field because it'll be in a large stadium with lots of states and we'll do something there was some entertainment but it won't be the kind of Gala like we saw in Calgary or La where it was a separate day and a whole separate event. When I was a separate ticket. We won't do something like that. (00:09:55) Let's go to the phones get some of your questions for Jack Kelly here on sport Foley 02276 thousand is our phone number. We're going to st. Paul. Hi Steve. Hi, how are you doing? Good. So I got a question about the cost of this thing because we live in a state with the third highest taxes in the country. And the rate of Taxation is going up faster at a greater increase than the growth in personal income. So anytime any quasi governmental body decides to do something in this state the taxpayers get socked real hard and we all get it in the pocketbook is this going to cost us millions of dollars? I'll hang up and listen. Good question Steve. How much does it cost and who pays for it Jack? That's a real good question, and it's a very unusual event and if you give me about two minutes, I'll give you kind of an overview and all the expenses. I don't think that'll answer Steve's question. It's this is a joint venture between the US Olympic Committee and a local (00:10:44) organizing committee and the (00:10:46) total cost of putting the event on it somewhere around 10 million (00:10:48) dollars and Olympic Committee pays about you know, 324 that and we've got, you know, five or six or seven million dollars in (00:10:55) that but the Olympic Committee sits down and cuts a check but no they're responsible for bringing the athletes in they find all the athletes (00:11:00) Transportation expenses. They handle all the national media expenses do some promotion (00:11:05) that they are and they provide the (00:11:06) uniforms for the athletes and that's (00:11:08) these things are all included in the 10 million. That's it. Yes, and in that area then and (00:11:12) we're responsible for promotion the event our administrative staff food and housing Transportation entertainment for the athletes and those sort of things and the food and housing is obviously the major expense of that one with the administrative costs. You got a real print ticket brochures and you've got to pay for it. I'll radio ads and that sort of thing. So I think and what Steve was interesting it was pretty much (00:11:34) word is our five or seven million dollars come from (00:11:37) And it comes from a combination of souvenir sales ticket sales and corporate sponsorships the the LA model on running these events. I think is the one that everybody's going to use from now on what we saw in Calgary. There won't be government money applauding we met, you know, we'll have some policemen directing traffic and those sort of things but we're not going to be spending where there are no grants from the state or the either the major cities to provide cash for this. This is something that's run as a private entity will sell tickets. We will get corporate sponsors. It's something that the corporations are going to want to be a part of they'll get recognition of the venues and signage and tickets in the chance to host customers like and and to be identified as the as the supplier of tents or ice or soft drinks or whatever to the event but it's very important to us to make sure that we don't use public money because we don't want it to be that kind of an issue. (00:12:24) So you're a separate nonprofit (00:12:26) non-proliferation. We're a 501 c 3 nonprofit corporation and we do so (00:12:30) we may appear to be quite as I public (00:12:33) but there's really no relationship to the to either state or local (00:12:36) government you yeah. The no governmental unit is responsible for your the debts you incur and if we incurred (00:12:41) debts and we've got to find someone to make my privately without the states in the city will not be responsible for that. But it's a good question. I think it's something that we need to make people understand because there is always that fear that what happens if there's a big deficit but you know, if the event as well marketed and corporations want to be a part of it as we talked earlier, we showed how Exxon really in Houston decided we get into it and print a million ticket brochures and use it as a promotional device at the station's to attract people to their stations and and we'll do that some of those sort of things here and it will be attractive marketing opportunity for companies (00:13:13) financially. How did Houston go in 86. Were you able to cover your costs first ones to make money where you really (00:13:18) first ones to make money, but were the first ones that had the chance to look at that l a model that Peter ueberroth put together nice and it made even more money last year in North Carolina and is on track to make money in Oklahoma City and and should do and should you know, it (00:13:31) will be in the black. I mean we (00:13:33) the intent is not to make a lot of money because then you feel safe. You could have charged this a few dollars less for tickets. And (00:13:39) what and what do you do with the overage but the intent will be too if we (00:13:42) have a profit it will fall right into amateur sports. We'll split but any profit with the Olympic Committee so half it will go to support the Olympic movement the United States the other half will go to support amateur sports in the Twin Cities area. So it's a thing a worthwhile goal Force. Hmm. (00:13:55) Now of the somewhere between five and seven million dollars that you'll have to come up with Jack about what percentage of that do you think will come from ticket sales? (00:14:01) Well historically ticket sales for major events. Like the Olympics are very low that as a percentage of total revenue and sold are going to be 4% Really the LA. They're about 20% in Houston. It was about 50% and I think we'll see something in that 40 to 50% range interestingly enough will do that while charging basically between 4 and 12 dollars for tickets and would they be $15 or sofa Opening Ceremonies, and I don't try to (00:14:26) hold me to that precise number but it'll be (00:14:28) something in that range where they can go and see, you know, the best fences in America for four dollars. Then go watch team handball for four dollars and softball for four dollars maybe on And if you want to see the best figure skaters might cost you ten or twelve but that's still a real bargain compared to yeah other costs and if we sell the number of tickets, I think we can sell here we can cover about 40 to 50 percent of our costs with ticket Revenue at those prices and that press that down were for most sports people can go to an Olympic Festival event for no more than the cost of going to a movie and I think that's a powerful incentive to go. (00:14:59) Will there be such a thing as an all event ticket pass for the entire Festival that would get you into anything or is it all reserved seats different will be reserved his they'll be kind of a special (00:15:08) section for some of the corporation VIPs, but we don't want to have too big a section. I think you and I probably won't remember what happened in Calgary. When all those VIP seats were empty in the public couldn't get in and we want to make sure that we don't have people shut out well because we've reserved a block of seats for people who really aren't going to show up. We'll take very good care of our corporate sponsors, but and it all event ticket is a little tough because you got 18 Sports at a time going on. So, of (00:15:30) course we can only (00:15:32) are much better off not to pay the price of that all that ticket and in some states, and I'm not sure. I'm not coming off here in some states. If you sell a ticket for an event, you have to provide a seed for it. And so if you have it all event ticket and you take four dollars-five dollars eight dollars twelve you add them all up and you sell someone on all event ticket for $1,000. You've actually got to leave it empty seat eyes there which you know, when there's 18 events at the same time. They can only be in one and so it's really not a very practical sort of sure (00:15:57) is known as far as TV rights are concerned is that significant part of the budget? And do you handle that or whose Colorado? So that's Olympic Committee revenue and you know, (00:16:04) we talked about what they have to pay for. Well their portion of the revenue is is they get the TV Revenue we get the ticket revenue and corporate sponsor money. (00:16:11) They it has been on (00:16:12) ESPN which most sports fans are obviously familiar with it's not an ESPN the last three years and got some pretty good numbers that have gotten better. Every year there right now have a look how it has it out for bid and it's apparently between ESPN again and Turner Broadcasting Network (00:16:27) and is ninety one that's already I mean 90 that's already out for bid the bidding for the whole quadrennium. I see you're so nice kind of build on, you know, the technical capability and (00:16:34) roll from one event to the other so they're getting the whole Running the same time and we'll find out in a few months who that is, but it's a it'll be a cable network, (00:16:42) but it's a great time to do it because the competition for rights among. I mean, they're still putting cable entities together that are bidding for sports. It's just phenomenal and ESPN as you know, lost the hockey the NHL hockey. (00:16:52) So they I think they very definitely don't want to lose over a hundred hours of programming and that's how much it will be Auto Beyond over a ten-day period of be on for about a hundred hours, which is a lot of coverage. Okay and quite a bit of the coverage goes as you might expect to what we saw in the Olympics. Let's just now let's take a panel. It's let's look at the city at we're showing and they give a lot of skyline shots and then they cover a lot of local features and and they also cover the ability of the local people to conduct the event. So I think it's important for us to do a good job because we're going to get that kind of coverage and if we don't do a good job, that's just as highlighted as if we do do a good job, (00:17:24) you know, I got to admit Jack I haven't spent probably five minutes thinking about this Olympic festival for this program, but now that I start the wheels start turning you think what jeez the best basketball players in the country that are you know, obviously not professionals. To be here best hockey players in the country that same group are going to be here best young (00:17:41) gymnasts the best figure skaters track and (00:17:43) field and all the sudden all the glamour (00:17:44) sports. But what's really nice about the event and let's take a look at track and field for example, there are no Heats. So when we have the event, that's why you can have it over three days instead of over an eight or nine days. You just have finals. So for the track and field fan he can sit in for hours and watch just Heats. I mean just just gives me this finals and then go 3 miles away and go watch the best basketball players and if the track tickets $8 and basketballs seven dollars for the price of going to something else you can watch two events the same day and we want to get people to think about doing that. This is a great sampling event. You can go sample some sports and you don't feel so bad about leaving two thirds way through if you want paid for $5.00 and you got a chance to watch world-class table tennis or world-class fencing her team handball or Sports. We've all heard about but I've really never seen on and you know canoe kayak yachting rowing. They're all being all in the vent. (00:18:34) I guess what strikes me as being amazing now that you start talking. About that is that you can actually find some places that are within our proximity be able to hold all these things more or less at the same time. (00:18:44) But here in the Twin Cities quite interesting. It'll be the tightest and most compact that the events ever been really we will probably not go very much farther east than just east of 49346984 on the east side of st. Paul and then we'll have yachting out in the Minnetonka. Oh really? And then we're going to build a new as you know it and endure velodrome up in Blaine, which is a track cycling Arena. (00:19:06) So be kind of the northern (00:19:07) and then down now we may not go any further than the much more south of the Met Center for hockey. So it's very very compact failing as a great lake for rowing and canoeing and most other cities have had to go a long ways out to get a nice quality like for rowing and canoeing and kayaking events and we can do Phelan which is just as you know a few miles from downtown st. (00:19:27) Yeah. Are you already starting the process of Contracting for facilities at this point (00:19:31) not contracted. We have contacted most of the facilities and they know we're interesting are blocking out the dates. But we have to get Olympic Committee approval ice and National governing body for all those Sports approval that the site meets their standards and we know some of them we know for example that the Saint Paul Civic Center is going to meet gymnastic standards and figure skating standards. It's right not much of a question so we can pretty much write that one in stone. Right but some of the other facilities that have not hosted a bad bit event for example looking at the McAllister field house for badminton. Hmm and from my understanding of what they're looking for is a perfect facility, but I have I did some badminton people to come in and look at it and say yes, we agree says yeah, but and that's a lot of what we'll be doing over the next six months or so starting with that process and 436 Sports. It is very time (00:20:14) consuming and you say the med center is what you have in mind for the Haka competition. Yeah. How about basketball (00:20:19) that's were looking at Williams Arena hmm and the and volleyball finals and Williams also and Wilkins Arena over here in st. Paul for boxing and volleyball prelims and so with the depth of facilities, and we're not even planning to use the new NBA arena and although that may be a possibility if it turns out to be that's going to be Done in time. (00:20:37) Yeah, but it's hard to count on right. That's why I suppose (00:20:39) we don't need it. But it if we do and it is ready. We could probably could move on sport over there, (00:20:43) huh from past experience with the festival's Jack what events do you think we'll draw the biggest crowds and and how big an attendance can you maybe think about for those? (00:20:53) Okay gymnastics will be a big draw. It's that's been a sellout the last couple of nights in Houston last couple nights in North Carolina. You got the Civic Center in mind for that when the Civic Center will do well for that basketball did real well last year in North Carolina that we had a sellout in Houston for the final but not for the prelims in North Carolina. They had bigger crowds for premiums that are 20,500 person to sell off for finals in the in the new Dean Dome (00:21:17) all catch em, and they had (00:21:19) several North Carolina yet players JRE to couple of their big recruits were in the event so they were pretty excited about it. I think we'll do some big numbers for hockey. Hmm. I'll be very surprised. If we don't have very large crowds for figure skating gymnastics volleyball is has been a real sleeper in the last few events. People are kind of turned on to quality of all. (00:21:36) I think volleyball do very well for you here. That's (00:21:38) what volleyball it has a history here and some support here. So we'll do well in viable. But even in the so-called Minor Sports, you know, they're used to getting dissed, you know, parents and friends and they all draw thousand here 1500 there because people want to go see it and we'll and an opening ceremonies will be a big draw also (00:21:55) talking to Jack Kelly who's the president of the 1990 US Olympic Festival to be held in the Twin Cities. I'm J.G. Preston. This is portfolio on ksjn 1330. I'm hanging up the conversation. But please don't feel like you're not welcome here. Give us a call. I'd love to saw Jeff Walker's fancy new hat Jeff Walker's this portfolio engineer is his fancy new hat. It has underneath the the visor. It says portfolio engineer just in case I forgot who he was. That's really nice Jeff. It's almost as nice as that shirt you're wearing. Anyway, I don't have to ask all the questions to to 76 thousand. Feel free to call in and say what's on your mind as we talk about the 1990 US Olympic Festival multi-sport competition 2276 thousand we're going goodness gracious. All the way to Waverly hi Barb. Hi must be some kind of strange atmospheric conditions. I don't know we could be heard out in Waverly. Well, you always can just It's really terrific. The reason I'm calling is I want to find out about equestrian events. I resources you do. Okay, we're equestrian events will be in the festival and I apologize (00:22:56) answer to your last question that equestrian events have always been great sellers it there will be a question events in the in the Olympic Festival. They'll be held at the fairgrounds. Uh-huh. And we have historically sold out all the jumping events that even dressage has been a big ticket seller because people that got shut out of the jumping events Come True size, but we will have some of America's best, you know horses and Riders and it's that they really like it. It's because it's a chance for them. Normally they're associated with just other question people. It's a nice chance for them to be in a in with other sports people to remind people of their Sportsman and athletes as well as just horse owners (00:23:30) great and answer your question Barb. Yeah good. Thanks for calling. Yeah. Oh, go ahead. Yeah. I'm curious as to how the person who's interested in dressage. I can get involved in helping up. (00:23:44) I appreciate the question because (00:23:46) I have a way to give our phone number. We are just (00:23:49) opening some officers. We're in the process of in some temporary space and will be moving into the Trade Center here in St. Paul MN for our permanent offices, but if someone is interested, they can call her now and it right now it's just basically me and an answering machine, but the number is 291 1990. That's Eric 0612 and we hope that people don't forget that number. That's the one they'll call for ticket information later, but to 9 1 1990 and we can get some information on the festival to or they can just write Us in this care of the World Trade Center US Olympic Festival 55101, and then we will save that information on file and then as we get further information about volunteers and how they can get involved will get back to them, but that's probably about three or four months away to will get back to the people. But if they want their name on file, and we will not go too. Well. We're already building the files Now by (00:24:36) Sports. We great people. So you go ahead and give that one and call Barbara. I'm sure they'll be able to take care of you great. Thanks. Thank you. Jeff Walker this portfolio engineer wants to know what dressage is Jack. Well, it's another (00:24:47) equestrian event. And if you recall that in watching it, it's the one where the horses, you know prance around and I apologize. I'm probably not using the right word according to certain priest scribe movements. If you don't have the one with the horses just seemed to bounce (00:25:00) and kind of like doing figures and figure (00:25:03) skate. Yeah. It's very cool to that don't know jumping is obviously the jumping event. But this is one with the horses are the show they're disappointed are able to to respond to certain commands and movements in a very prescribed way. It's to a horse person. It's very interesting. It's like but again, it's like the pro the compulsory events in gymnastics or synchronized swimming or something else to the not an issue. They don't know what they're seeing initiated. It's very skillful. (00:25:29) It's Bell dressage Jasper. It's French 2276 thousand is our phone number here on sport folio at 28 minutes after 12 with the Jack Kelly for the 1990 US Olympic Festival caller on the line in Minneapolis. Hi Doug. Hi JP, real good. I got it. If I could have all sort of a brief discussion with Jack and I hope to let him do most of the talking. That's what we're here for Doug. I I turn on the program about 15 minutes ago and some place over five minutes ago. I heard him say that Lake Phalen was a great venue for rowing and canoeing events. And and I think it may be a great venue for canoeing events. And I think it could be good for rowing. I don't know whether Jack is aware right now that you can only get about a fourteen hundred meter. Actually, it's closer to 1800 but you're right. You can't right now with the water level. That's true. Yeah, like right through the middle of the lake and I mean hope you know, I'm sure we're all very hopeful we won't have that problem two years or three years from the right years from now, but I mean is that acceptable for an Olympic sports festival to have an 18? Demeter course that narrows at the end and you got to go through weeds. It's an interesting question because you don't very few cities have ever had perfect water sport (00:26:52) facilities. When you Oklahoma City, you know doesn't have the lakes and yachting and rolling a tough and the rowers in some of the previous year's have cut this the length of their longest event to something less than 2,000 meters because they didn't want to be a hundred miles from the mainstream and and they normally tend to be a little bit of stepchildren because they're out a long ways from the other athletes who always from those sports that you can tired to set up stands. It's much more expensive. It's hard to build the course and we've talked to the rolling people the national on people and explain the situation and they said we know that there's some talk about dredging the end of the lake to make it 2,000 meters. We know you've got a water problem, but let's set failing as our first choice because they like the idea that it's there's a lot of people around it. They can get a big crowd to watch them and and they don't have to bus an hour to practice and an hour back (00:27:41) and be closer to the Other events and but you're right. It is not a perfect facility because of that possibility but they've said (00:27:47) look we will be selecting some of our teams there. We're not going to go for any world records and if if we can go 1800 meters in a course at that long, we'd be perfectly satisfied with that because that it's only the 2000 meter event that is affected. The other shorter events are not (00:28:02) affected. Well, I'm relieved to hear that the you know, you've got the sanctioning bodies. Yeah tacit approval that that'll be acceptable (00:28:12) appreciate the call because you know, this is the sort of discussion we have to have on I'm almost every sport and and as you can see the there's nothing that's right nice and neat and clean and but I'm glad the local people are aware enough of some of the limitations because it means there are people that are obviously rowing fans in town that (00:28:29) are you gonna do Advanced work with the residents of the area about the (00:28:32) parking sure we will be looking at parking seeing what part what the parking concerns around a lot of times we do some shoveling and it will have to do some shuttle busing and those sort of things in there (00:28:42) and I I guess the last question I have is you know that the power boat traffic on Lake Minnetonka is unbelievable, especially 444 high-profile sailing event. Are you going to be able to do anything to control that? (00:29:00) Well, the auditing competition only takes a couple of days and we've already laid out some courses and we have will probably have the opportunity of know we talked early about this but there being no State money or federal money. We have the opportunity to use some other agencies to do some things in terms of controlling other uses on lakes has happened in previous years where they just block other uses for within (00:29:21) certain areas of a lake (00:29:22) for a certain period of time. Hmm. (00:29:24) I wish you a lot of success with lime and I realize how difficult this because you know, all the power boaters say to me the heck with this thing. I want to use my boat today and I don't want to worry about it. But (00:29:33) still you have a it'll be a big enough event that opportunity probably exists. No, we can't do it in the hole like but you could do so do it on some areas of the like that would be Proximate to the to the audit course. (00:29:44) Yeah. Well, I'm very impressed with the amount of advanced planning you're doing and I wish you a lot of success. That's what I appreciate the chance to show the kind of planning we have to (00:29:54) go through with it because your jays first question was idea. How much (00:29:58) time why are you taking two years to get this thing going and you give you some nice examples? Thanks. Thanks for the call Doug. Yeah, I guess the two things I come away with it at this point are one. It's amazing, you know, all this stuff two years in advance and be it sounds like this job is the three-and-a-half headaches when you're when you're doing again a little things like this with the three dozen different sports. (00:30:17) Yeah it is but you know, let's face it a lot of us that are sports fans. What a great job on me (00:30:21) that I've been a sports fan all my (00:30:23) life and to be able to do something and actually get paid to be involved in the administrative side of it is kind of fun. I mean, I now know how high a ceiling has to be for a volleyball court how deep water polo pool has to be (00:30:37) there's a nice piece of trivia that I get it or are you going to just hold those Yankees 41 feet for volleyball court. (00:30:43) The it's 2 meters, you know for a water polo 410022 is 1.8 meters, which is about 5 feet 10 inches so that you have a pool that and if it's less than five ten everywhere your Roi to decimate water post and it's so you have two nice big pool which leads us to the reason that we're building the new Swim Center and University of Minnesota campus. You'll be using after your one using that to for water polo and Diving and synchronized swimming and also the swimming events really that's a that will be our tightest scheduling because the we just aren't you know endowed with an abundance of first-class swimming facilities, which is one of the reasons that the Swim Center is being (00:31:17) built. But is that going to be opening just in time for the festival (00:31:20) the opening in early 1990 which gives chance to kind of work the bugs out of wood and get that taken care of it and that's one piece of facility construction that were involved in the other one is the velodrome up and Blaine which is really going to be a fun if anybody has never been has never been to a track cycling event. They're in for a real treat. (00:31:38) I've seen those on TV. Those are guess we (00:31:40) built one in Houston outdoor concrete fell. Rome the hunt we have next month the u.s. National championships and Olympic trials there and the crowds will be all you can fit in the shoehorn in there. They line themselves up two or three deep all the way around the track nobody sits down and it's kind of a wave of noise because it's the cyclist go by people bang on the board with sticks in their hands and it really is fun. It's very colorful and the head-to-head race has the match Sprint's that are three times around the track a thousand years three times around the Houston track and would be four times around the track here. If you win by like a half a tire half of a wheel length that's a major victory most of our less of that in there just fantastically close races. It's fun to watch Do You Know Jack did the (00:32:19) u.s. Cycling Federation? They designate Blaine. Is there one of their future training sites or something like (00:32:24) that? That's the intent is what what's that? Once the velodrome is built here. It'll be an indoor covered Village Rome 250 meters whether it's designated it on its going to get a whole bunch of events because it'll be the only this another 250 meter track in Encino, California, but it's an outdoor track. It'll be the only indoor track in the US. No, the other one in Montreal and there are only a few velodromes and automatically it goes on the circuit and it'll probably be if we're if we do a good job and then reasonable job. It'll be the Olympic trials site for 1992 for Barcelona, really and so, you know automatically because it's one of only a few and it'll be run by in this one amateur sports corporation, which is a first-class no administrative organization that they you know, we'll make sure that we get our share of events but in a normal course of things will get a lot of events anyway, hmm (00:33:14) day what you're listening to ksjn 1330 Minneapolis st. Paul. It's 24 minutes before one o'clock. I'm J.G. Preston. This is portfolio. No Jeff, so you're telling me Oh, okay, no promo. So usually sometimes I'll sit back here and we'll play a little recorded message from one of our Legions of people here at ksjn 1332. Tell us what's coming up this afternoon, but we have no such thing available. So rather than do that gracefully. I just did it very awkwardly, but we're among friends here. Jack Kelly is with me. He's the president of the 1990 US Olympic It's Festival as we use the break to pour some water subject. You pour that pass at water pitcher over here. I'll just I'll just pour some here on while you were talking. I just had myself. Let's do this now. So the great stuff. It sounds so close. We can do a special effect (00:33:55) crinkle a piece of cellophane to sound just like oh, yeah (00:33:58) go. They saw that piece of sheet metal in the other Studio. Yeah. Yeah. There's this great piece of sheet metal. They use for the ksjn FM morning program. You banging sounds just like thunder and rain by had a my I play it after about 10 minutes the other day. I feel like a real Idiot by the time I got done no comments, please no comments. We have a phone number here to to 76 thousand. You can call up and talk about the US Olympic Festival 2276 thousand the number to call here on sport folio Jack I have to admit I probably spend as much time reading business Publications as I do Sports Publications, and I you read an awful lot in business Publications about sports sponsorships corporate sponsorships of events, whatever. I know that's a big part of your financial picture for 1990. So maybe you can kind of give us an overview as to how that process works how you get the word out to corporations. How you go approach him what you're offering them what their incentives are and talk about this major financial piece of the puzzle. (00:34:50) That's what I've been working as you just did. Decatur up most of my time so far Sports sponsorships are 241 is there are some people are convinced that you just say. I've got a bicycle race and let me go call Coca-Cola and cores and somebody else and they're going to write me a check for half million dollars and I'll put their you know name on the door someplace and they'll be happy and those things used to work but they don't anymore hmm and effective sport sponsorship is where you really look for links and marketing opportunities for the sport and try to find a reason why that particular sport is is it is attracted to that particular event. I remember somebody from American Express talk to me one time and another type of conversation. I said people come to watch all the time and say gee want to be nice. If you could be Associated you American Express with our nice wholesome All-American bicycle race and requested. No, I mean you guys need us more than we need you you put American Express on it that that validates your event and and we'll be looking at we have some chances that we're going to have major companies approach to we're going to be talking to being Old patrons or or sponsors of the event at various levels and in return they get depend on the level that they sign up they'll get certain amounts of signage the right to host a certain sport which has been very exciting chance to participate in the in the medal ceremonies free tickets recognition at the events on the public address system and just the chance to be associated with what we really believe. It's going to be a first class of and one that when it comes here was going to say boy, how come my company didn't get involved if they don't get involved and we've had a number of frankly inquiries from companies saying what are you going to get in touch with us? And I've been in the process of developing the material I want to present to them and I'm when I leave the studio today. I'm going to get on a plane go to Colorado Springs to meet with the Olympic Committee on Monday to make sure that they know what we're doing because they have National sponsors for the event and they have been historically Coke Miller Adidas and McDonald's and their the process of renegotiating their agreements with those firms, and we've got to make sure that the companies we want to talk to don't conflict with the people that they're negotiating with and so they have Know who we're going to talk to an approach and make sure that they've given us the guidelines. We will also have special special sponsorships of individual items will be looking for a sponsor for opening ceremonies sponsor for the volunteer program a sponsor for the ticket catalogs most other things, but the most important one and the most exciting thing in the whole event and we haven't even mentioned yet is the torch run. There's a Statewide torch run that will begin about six weeks before the event at Pikes Peak in Colorado Springs with the permanent US Olympic flame is lit and it's not kept with it all the time there and that was lit in turn from Mount Olympus from the permanent World Olympic flame. So there's a little bit of Mystique about the flame and we'll light there and it we will bring it either in a Miner's lamp 2.0 will run it. We're still trying to say how to get it to the City of Minneapolis. They'll be a Statewide torture on for about six weeks and it will go to every corner of the state in the North Carolina that came within 15 miles of every person in the state in Houston. We read a Texas wide torch run for 4,600 miles is Karen. Willie Nelson and George Strait it was in the Fort Worth Stockyards and the Fourth of July and the Cotton Bowl of what night of 4th of July with a live remote from the Statue of Liberty and it's been carried in the backs of elephants and in boats, and it's real a lot of fun and some towns are the whole small town will turn out and people come in waving flags as it comes through and because the governor is established 1990 as celebrate Minnesota 1990 will be linking us into that program and you letting every town decide how they want to celebrate the arrival of the torch and what H-Town kind of put together its own program and it will cover, you know, a hundred to two hundred miles a day (00:38:28) and you're looking for a sponsor for that (00:38:29) event. And the last two years of the sponsors have been shell company and McDonald's and they got logos and on every run of the carried. It was about 25,000 Runners into the last two years. So it's it's a fun project for them and they can and whoever the sponsor is can link it to their own facilities and and a major marketing program, but that has been the tremendous leader because nobody in any of these small towns can say they don't know what they look like festivals coming or To start Atticus is a marketing opportunity. That's a great place to pass out ticket catalogs to sell (00:38:57) t-shirts. What what kind of total sponsorship Revenue you looking for for (00:39:01) 903 million somewhere in that range the other about 40 again about 40 or between 40 and 50 percent of the total cost of the event and then we'll also add to that some souvenir. So 40 50 percent from tickets 40 or 50 from corporate sponsors in the balance from souvenirs and those sort of things (00:39:20) Jeff Walker who probably will be hosting the show some Navy keeps coming up with all these wisenheimer remarks said if the torch goes out we have to go back to Pikes Peak and start all over again. (00:39:28) We interestingly enough you keep the flame lit in a Miner's lamp and then you keep re lighting torches. We will probably use torches from the 1984 torch run which even make it more fun. It'll be the torture that we use in that cross country torch run, but you light a Miner's lamp and then you'll use that to relight a torch and you keep the flame permanently burning where it can't blow out I see and then you light one torch as it fading down you like the next torch? But you always keep a permanent flame. I thought that was a dumb question, but they had that all worked (00:39:57) out. My son who was 18 at the time was on the torch running (00:40:02) in 1986 and for about two months and he estimates that they let the you know, 20,000 torches. Yeah. It's a major production was the Torches that we saw running across the country in those memorable AT&T commercials. Mmm. Only stay lit for about ten minutes or 50 PLS. Yeah. There's the fuel burns out quite just be grateful. You're not doing an 88 (00:40:22) Olympic Festival. They probably band (00:40:23) the torch run in this state this year. Holy crow. He's running whole thing up. You're right. I (00:40:27) will get some rain and I have two hours 17 minutes before one o'clock. Let's go to the phones with Jack Kelly who's the president of the u.s. Olympic Festival 1990, which will be held in the Twin Cities going to Minneapolis. Hello Steve. Hi there. I'm wondering what you're gonna do about facilities for track and field and please don't tell me you're going to have them in the dome. I won't tell you that because it's way too (00:40:47) expensive to put a track on the Dome. We are looking right now and if it's been discussing with the University of Minnesota, A major upgrade of the track at the University of Minnesota. If you're (00:40:57) familiar with the track over there, you could lose but your whole lot of seats in it. (00:41:02) It's but those temporary seats are relatively easy sort of thing to do. What we'd like to do is is go through a track upgrade and attract reconfiguration. So more the field events can be held in the middle of the track and then put a lot of temporary seats in there and then leave some permanent seating for the future. If you've been there recently, you know, there's less than a thousand permanent seats and we will we will need somewhere in the 12 to 15,000 range. We think of seats for the event but we do want it's over want to have a legacy in track and field and leave a first-class track there and enough seats that they can go and bid on, you know, NCAA events and Big 10 events again, (00:41:37) but we do (00:41:39) want to leave a very much upgraded Minnesota track and also some improved and increased the number sitting there. (00:41:46) That's the other question I have is what's happening with television coverage for these games (00:41:51) is it we talked about it before? The bid is out now and ESPN and Turner Broadcasting are the two most serious bidders and they are bidding with the Olympic Committee in and that's who gets the TV revenue is the u.s. Olympic Committee and the Olympic Committee will decide what package they like whether it's dollars and percentage of AD revenues or whatever but it will be on one of those two networks my own bet would be on ESPN (00:42:14) and they will thanks. Good luck. Okay. Appreciate it Steve. Thanks very much. Well, as any of that normally blacked out in the host City Jack. (00:42:21) No, it has not been which has been a source of problem in Baton Rouge. They complained that a lot of their reduced revenues were because people could stay home and watch it. But remember if you stay home and watch it what you're going to watch is 11 that to this event cut to three minutes of this and if you're a boxing fan, you're going to see this one whole fight and then about bits of three other fights and none of the other eight and the true boxing fan for eight to ten dollars in to say I really want to watch Boxing somebody to watch Boxing and if you were gymnastics fan, you're going to watch gymnastics for a few minutes and then you going to watch Boxing and then rowing and then team handball so Generally the it's not enough in my mind of key people home. (00:42:57) Maybe you haven't quite well you went through this in Houston. So you probably could answer this from that but which sport or a couple of sports of the trickiest to pull off for maybe there's special circumstances here that make him tricky as far as your choice of venues or whatever but one of the ones that are water sports and the caught I think it was dug the called a while ago. (00:43:13) That's the tough one the water sports because you've got to build courses and you've got to block off of lakes and and those sort of things and it's more difficult and quite frankly the revenues aren't there. I mean, you don't mind spending all that money building a course if you can sell 50,000 tickets, but you know what, you know, 40 fail and we're probably going to have to have it as a free event. Oh really? Well, you can't we can't make the residents not stay in their front yards and watch and it's a public like so I would imagine that we're probably going to have whatever cost we have for rowing canoeing will not be offset by revenues it and there are there only a few Sports where we don't have revenues in the probably yachting and the wrong and canoeing (00:43:51) events, you know, we Talk to in the discussion about failing earlier about the water level and whatnot. I'm terribly naive about this stuff Jack. But if you were in a low water situation, could you physically Add Water somehow to try to (00:44:02) raise the limit the cost would probably prohibitive. We probably at that point would look at another facility and say to that rowers see, it's too bad. We tried to get you in close but we can't it's just not worth the cost of putting in the water for a non-revenue sport. What is Oklahoma City doing for growing by the way, they've got they've got to wake some some ways out of the city that they're using. I don't know the name of it, but they do have something that's big enough. Anyway, well they say it (00:44:25) is go back to the phones with Jack Kelly from the US Olympic Festival 2276 thousand to Minneapolis. Hi Jim. Yes. Hi speaking of rowing event. You were talking about holding them in Lake Phalen seems to me like Lake Calhoun has longer larger than Lake Phalen is is that true or false? (00:44:44) I think it's wider. I don't think it's longer. The one advantage that Phelan has is a course already laid in the in the lake and what's actually involved in that Jack are there physical things that are have to produce a go to the have to go down to the what it called a bottom of a lake. Yeah the bottom of the bottom of the like and actually put in markers that extent, you know that and things that you raised about pylons above the water. I see that to define the course and it's a very expensive proposition and some some you have to look for, you know facilities that you can get boats in and out of the water easily. And if you look at the North End of faylene, it's a pretty easy access like and I know there's anything about that at Calhoun l so it would just I get it it just a little bit harder to shut it down and set the course in there. But I believe that the reason that it's we've tended to be selected it is that there's no the primaries is no there's no course laid in Calhoun, but there is a course laid in Phelan. (00:45:36) Thank you. Thanks for the call. (00:45:38) It's interesting to see all the rowing rowing questions. And I the one of the real pluses to have in the event here is There are you look at all 36 porches him. I got him. They got to be a few Sports where there just aren't any local fans, but that's not true (00:45:50) here. I don't think he or know they're a (00:45:52) canoe fans kayak fans throwing fans archery fans people who do it to do all these sports event protecting some of the ones like speed skating than have been difficult to sell in the festival for Speed skating will be very popular event and we'll probably have body Blair hmm in the event. (00:46:06) You mentioned speed skating. It is something going on at Blaine was speed skating to are there they will there is a special socks getting silly (00:46:12) soccer facility and field hockey had been put out there, but we'll use Aldrich Arena here in St. Paul. He's just a regular (00:46:18) ice sheet type of thing. So that becomes the is that the newfangled type of speed skating that's endorsement ended with if (00:46:24) you and it if you again it's very exciting to watch because there's lots of Falls. I mean, it's so tight that you can be up in the lead and they you still if you take the corner just a fraction too tight. You're going to fall down and in Falls aren't as common in the longer course of speed skating, but it was curious and I finally had a chance to watch. The opening ceremony is tape from Houston about six months ago and they had two features on Athlete on Festival athlete. This is the ESPN coverage ESPN's coverage and they tried to a lot of features of up and up close and personal sort of things the stars of them are stars in tomorrow and the first two athletes that they focused on in during the opening ceremonies in Houston where Bonnie Blair and Brian Boitano who nobody knew six and who everybody knew and I think that those I think that that really tells you the kind of athlete you're going to see in the (00:47:13) event. I think it's exciting thing for fans to is I mean, you know this as well as I do from being involved in different things people love to be the first to know about (00:47:20) and they will they'll see people for example, if we talk about basketball you won't have the seniors in basketball because we're not though of be in the pros by 1992. So we'll have the best college sophomores freshman and kids coming in the best recruits to help us prepare our team the kids to be selected for 1992. So you'll see, you know, the equivalent of this last year the Jr. Reads in the those sort of players coming in. To the festival but it'll be that's why they'll be all be named players because most of us that are basketball fans know who the recruits are not (00:47:50) over-the-top freshman and that'll that'll really especially be fun. I think for people here to watch and see the collegians to (00:47:56) be that's right. You guys you realize all morning kind of pleasure all well and weíll be in the festival (00:48:01) now, here's another thing I'm ignorant about Jack but it's 1990 a Pan Am games (00:48:04) year as well 91 91 and it's set tentatively for Havana very candidly on imagine a very tentatively because Savannah has indicated that they may or may not be in Seoul and that's on again off again. In fact the word now if they may be on again, which is bad news for our us boxing team. I think but I think that if they actually in fact do back out of the game, so I think that the the Pan American Sports organization may pull that game away from them. So you just not playing the international sports game right guys, but then I don't know who would host (00:48:34) it was like a zit been in Cuba the painting wow sounds Harry (00:48:40) no and and of course their big sports fans and then always right athletes, but I don't And that's a sure that if they've backed out of the Olympics at the politics of the event will let them let them keep it. One thing. We haven't talked about that. I think is really another interesting fact about the game is about the festival in the game's is that we got about 1,500 National media people coming in which is more than keep more than come in for the world series of Super Bowl and psh. Yeah, that's actually quite a fail and but will be credentialing about 1,500 people from medium, which is a lot of people (00:49:10) mostly people come in and follow their Hometown folks or yeah, but (00:49:13) also you don't we get all the I think out of the top hundred papers in the last two years. They've averaged 80 eight of the top hundred papers sent people here, which is means you're going to get virtually all the top media outlets in the United States. Hmm and and ABC and NBC people come in do want to build coverage this and features and and a lot of Corporations come in that Olympic Committee and Olympic team sponsors. The ones that are come in because they've all usually good athletes, you know on their own payrolls or getting advisory contracts or whatever. They're all going to be here. This is what you get Those type stories to (00:49:45) are there other competitions in the summer of nineteen Jack that you compete with for athletes that conflicted all of your as far as training schedules are concerned to the actual dates (00:49:53) competition. There's another big event in 1990, but I think it helps our event that's a good will games. Huh? (00:49:59) Remember the Goodwill games which (00:50:01) was started in Moscow 1986 and when we ran had not head-to-head but about and and in Houston and the interests of the order is reversed in 1986. The Goodwill games were before the Olympic festival. And now the Goodwill games are just after the festival is about a six or seven day Gap in between them. But for most athletes, it's about a two week Gap and we don't think it's going to take any athletes away at all. If I think it will help it because a lot of Ethics will be in shape and they're going to be in both events and they're going to it just you know, the track athletes are appearing someplace in Europe in the summer anyway, and they'll come home to to to our vendor to stay in the US and go to Seattle for the Goodwill games and then back to Europe. So it gives them a double reason to come home to the US. Hmm and I think it more than being a negative. I think it'll be right positive thing. They don't Focus Attention on amateur sports bring the athletes home from Europe for sure and they'll be in shape for both events and there's enough recovery time for to do that. That's interesting. Are (00:50:53) there World University games in 1990? (00:50:55) No, that's it. So you really are the (00:50:57) focal point of the US amateur sports calendar then we hope so. Yeah, there was some other semi brilliant question. I had their about the the Goodwill games relationship when completely out of my mind so forget it ever existed six months before one o'clock. We have a few more minutes here with Jack Kelly anse portfolio on ksjn 1330. Our phone number is two two seven six thousand if you have questions about the 1990 US Olympic festival or anyone in the meantime for that matter 2276 thousand as we chat with Jack Kelly here on sport folio. What were the big lessons from Houston and 86 for you? Jack? What were the things that really opened your eyes that you've had to be very conscious about applying here in the Twin Cities for 1990. (00:51:38) I think the that you can sell this event in a big city that no Houston was the only big Had been held in and has been held them to date. (00:51:47) So in terms of some concern because it was some (00:51:49) concern that she is it going to get lost with the Astros and Oilers and here it's the twins in the Viking sure. It doesn't people there's a Cadre of people out there that will come to the event and then a big cat or a people if you just promoted in the right way, they will come to the event it gets a little bit different for each City because there's different sports are hot, but there was always some question and let me come here. I was worried until the event was held in Houston that can a big city support this thing or is it going to get lost in the shuffle on it was not lost in the shuffle. Hmm. I think that was a bust and the other lesson was that the Minor Sports the so-called Minor Sports because they're not to the people who are competing in them all have a lot of fans and if you package it right and give them a reason to come they will come and you know, the people will actually turn out to watch fencing in archery and table tennis and really are actually more interested in those in some of the bigger (00:52:35) Sports. Listen, I'd love to go watch team handball. I played a little that nice cool. And that was a great game. (00:52:38) It is. In fact, I have a son who kind of discovered he's now 20 is a perfect size about 63. And he discovered it after a high-school basketball career. And that's where he's playing that Texas and how can I really and so is that indoor/outdoor? That's it can be outdoor was used to be called field handball. And that was in the Olympic Games in 2036 is a field handball. It's not team handball is is pretty much an insulated or in fact, it's difficult to find a lot of venues for it because it the court is so long that you can't put it in a typical high school basketball right now. We're going to have it in Mariachi, huh over the eye surface over the extra they will have a roller skating events in there to they'll be rollerskating that roller skating again, and I'm not a publicist for each of these Sports Heroes getting as always. We'll try to be much more interesting that I had any idea. (00:53:23) It's a Racing type of what no, there's (00:53:25) no parts every program. Every roller skating will have three parts. I have Speed Roller Skating, uh-huh. They'll have roller hockey and then the dance portion of the dance portion of it is as attractive as watching figure skating and with apologies to all the other sports some of the best-looking woman that I've ever seen where some of the roller skating dance competitors. You know, they do individual skating men's singles women's singles Pairs and So when you buy a ticket to roller skating program for rubbish, but you'll watch it, you know, an hour of speed skating an hour of rohatgi an hour of the dance portion of it. (00:53:56) Is that metal than any other competition jacket had am game. It's a Pan Am games opinion. I'll be darned. I think it clear by the way. The Jeff Walker is not a wisenheimer. I have to retract that formally because when I accused him of making a wisenheimer remark earlier, which turned out of course be a great question everything and I'm really apologetic for that Jeff. I hope you won't you will go off strike. He has no longer behind the control board here. He's gone on strike. But I hope that that is sufficient to mollify his enormous ego and getting back in the chair. Okay, Jeff. We're cool. Thanks very much. I think (00:54:25) one of the things that we need to do here also, do you ask a question? But what did you learn Hmm? This can't be promoted as just attract me to gymnastics competition. You've got really going to make it a festival like atmosphere will do a lot of work to or decking decorating the venues and colors and flags and downtown st. Paul in Downtown Minneapolis and greeting the Torches. Comes into the cities and those kind of things and if it's just another athletic event, then we didn't do our job. We've got to spend the time to make it a festive occasion and really showcase ourselves for the longer term. Mhm. As you know, we do have some aspirations for some bigger events here. Although this is a standalone event is pretty big itself. And in many cities will be an end in itself. But I think it needs to be idea the size of the event the people in Los Angeles after having the Olympic Games and 84 are hosting the Olympic Festival in 91 and I just as excited about the Olympic Festival as they were about the Olympians bit. So I give you that it's not a you know a consolation event, if the people after having the Olympics are interested about that and the same committee the David wallpapers and Harry Usher's and people are the committee running the Olympic Festival 91. Well (00:55:29) will we be in the process of trying to bid for the 2000 Summer Olympics at (00:55:32) that point at the 2000 Summer Olympics? I was had the fortune to go to China last fall and be there for their National games and it's pretty much accepted in the Olympics world. That Beijing is the host really cows. Kind of kick off The Next Century that you know the nation of the 21st century and I think their agreement to go to Seoul very early, which was made when I was over there the quid pro quo for them agreeing so early was kind of a under the table commitment that if you don't screw it up, you've got the 2000 games. So the the next time the games will probably North America is 2004 (00:56:03) Well Jack, let's give your phone number. Once again for more information on the US Olympic Festival 1992 91 1990. But we (00:56:10) hope that they indelibly etched that number and remember even 291 1990. There's an answering machine on that and I'll be out of town till Tuesday. But if anybody's interested this call and we'll get back to them from the office and we'll have a more permanent address in another month or so (00:56:23) information on tickets volunteer, whatever you want to know that if the (00:56:27) number to get tickets wait a few months of the (00:56:29) table. Hey Jack, this has been fun. And I know we'll have a chance to do it again over the next couple of years, but it's obvious the interest is there and looking forward now I you've got me excited about it. I wasn't thinking about it. But now I'm really curious. (00:56:39) I'm have to go out and walk like failing again. (00:56:41) Thanks very much. Jack Kelly was the The US Olympic Festival in the Twin Cities in 1990. Thanks for coming by on sport folio. Thanks a lot. Thanks to Jeff Walker who did such a fine job behind the control board David O'Neill took care of all the amenities. So winking our associate producer in absentia. Thank you for listening. I'm J.G. Preston. See you next week here Force portfolio. You're listening to ksjn 1330 Minneapolis-Saint Paul. The week in review is next after Associated Press News. It's one o'clock.