They are: Robert Prazmark, president of Olympic sales and marketing-worldwide for IMG, Rick Dudley, chairman of Octagon, Philip Guarascio, lead executive for the National Football League (NFL) and former vice president of marketing at General Motors, Keith Reinhard, chairman of DDB Worldwide, Dennis Swanson executive vice president and chief operating officer of Viacom Television Stations Group, and Brian Collins, executive creative director of Ogilvy & Mather.
All six would serve on New York’s Olympic Sports Marketing Council and are currently based in New York.
The Council, to be chaired by NBA Commissioner David Stern, will be composed of leading experts in sports marketing, promotion, licensing, public relations, television, new media and sponsorship.
It will aim to provide comprehensive marketing advice and assistance to the 28 international federations for sport as well as the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) to develop a customised long-term programme of each Olympic sport in the US.
Council chair David Stern said: “The Council will help spearhead an unprecedented effort to use the full seven-year period before the Games to strengthen Olympic sports through a sustained and extensive marketing programme so that each Olympic sport can fully benefit from the drama and excitement of the Games themselves.
“The legacy for each sport will start being developed, long before the New York Games, not wait until after.”
For a fascinating insight into the Olympic Movement read Michael Payne's new book, 'Olympic Turnaround', about his time at the International Olympic Committee. Visit http://www.sportbusiness.com/reports/olympic_turnaround.adp
