A year in review and a look to 2011

It is hard to believe that the 2010 Annual Meeting already is two months behind us. When the holidays bleed into seemingly endless weeks of snowstorms, it can be jarring to realize the 2011 competitive season is already here.

Before we get too far into the new year, we would be well-served to remember what we accomplished in 2010. For all the drama that the year brought, it was also a year in which we made tremendous progress as an organization, in both real terms and in terms of strengthening the ties that bind our great, disparate sport together.

Our Board became very engaged in reaching out to our constituencies, soliciting your feedback and responding in ways that convey the value of the different parts of USATF while also staying focused on the key goals of our Strategic Plan. Although we do not and cannot have equity in how we fund everyone, we most certainly can have a tone of respect and professionalism in all of our dealings.

Our first year of Challenge Grants is one way we were able to put additional dollars toward traditionally under-funded programs in youth, masters and race walking. Within those three categories, we also saw tremendous achievement.

It was a year of innovation for our Youth Programs. Two Youth events were webcast, including a highly successful subscription-based webcasting of the Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships. Youth Athlete of the Year Trevor Barron broke...