PARIS – Here in France they have a saying for the thing that transpired as Salt Lake City won the right to the 2034 Winter Games, delivered amid an International Olympic Committee thrashing of the IOC’s favorite dog to beat, the United States of America.
Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.
The more things change, Uncle Sam, the more they stay the same.
The IOC gave Salt Lake 2034 because it had to. It needs American money. The U.S. television rights deal expires in 2032.
Since this is 2021, you probably have an email address. That email address is almost surely your name @ gmail or Yahoo or Outlook. Or it’s some super-cute thing, or it’s a combo of your name and numbers, like MP8for8Beijing or Usain958yams, again at gmail or Yahoo or Outlook. Like that. Right?
Not to say that things were maybe in need of an update at FINA, the international sports federation that oversees swimming and five other water-related disciplines, four of them Olympic sports (water polo, diving, artistic swimming and open water — the federation is pushing hard for the fifth, high dive), but literally no one at FINA had her or his own individual email. No one.
For years and years, emails went to departments. Not to people. That’s — how it was.
So, back to the 2021 thing. FINA now has, after 35 years, a new executive director, Brent Nowicki, an American lawyer, who succeeds Cornel Marculescu.
One of the first — of many — changes: FINA staff will get their own email addresses.
It’s no small thing.
