According to Newsday, NYC2012 spokesman Laz Benitez, commenting how the turmoil in the United States Olympic Committee could affect New York’s bid for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, said “if it becomes an issue, at that time we’ll address it. Right now, we’ll just continue to focus on preparing our bid”.
But it might be a difficult task. Just yesterday five U.S. Olympic Committee vice presidents and two high-ranking officers called for the resignation of USOC President Marty Mankamyer, accusing her of waging a personal campaign to discredit the organization’s chief executive Lloyd Ward and of reneging on an earlier pledge to resign.
USOC Vice President Bill Stapleton said in a conference call, “we believe President Mankamyer must resign as she promised to do. She no longer has our support, nor do we believe she has the necessary leadership skills to guide the USOC”.
He added, “we are dismayed that Ms. Mankamyer has attempted to hijack the ethics oversight committee as part of her own political agenda”, said Stapleton, who along with his fellow officers charged that Mankamyer suggested publicly that Ward could be fired and worked with USOC ethics compliance officer Patrick Rodgers “to create a rush to judgment and to create pressure on Mr. Ward in order that he might resign”.
Mankamyer said she was “troubled” by a number of aspects of Ward’s leadership but denied trying to oust him, and said she would not resign. “At this point I haven’t specifically been charged with anything, nor have I done anything (wrong) other than displeased my fellow officers”.
IF she doesn’t resign, Stapleton said the executive committee would ask for a special meeting of the full board to consider how Mankamyer could be removed, since the USOC constitution provides for no formal process.