Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, March 30, 1990 TAG: 9003300140
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JACK BOGACZYK SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
If you said Roanoke, you're wrong.
The Virginia State Games are scheduled for June 29-July 1 in Richmond. The Virginia CorEast State Games are planned for July 5-8 in the Roanoke Valley.
Confusing, right? Virginia is barely into the State Games business, and already there is an identity crisis, with the public wondering which Games are the real thing.
"Our Games are funded by the state as a line item in the budget, $175,000 to Virginia Amateur Sports for running the Virginia State Games. And we're sanctioned by the Governor's Commission on Sports and Fitness," said Doug Fonder, president of Virginia Amateur Sports Inc., based in Roanoke. "I met with [Del.] Dick Cranwell last week, and he's called Gov. Wilder's office, and we are going to get a letter that endorses us as the state representative of the Games."
In Richmond, Dick Hollander is the president of Sports Virginia Inc. His organization held the first Virginia State Games in August 1989, with 1,200 competitors in nine sports. That organization's Games have no state funding and no major corporate sponsorship; the Roanoke group has a three-year, $450,000 commitment from CorEast Savings Bank.
"We will hold the Virginia State Games for the second time," Hollander said, strongly emphasizing the three-letter article. "We have the Virginia State Games title and logo registered with the State Corporation Commission. We got that about 12 or 13 months ago . . . We had hoped the Roanoke group would join us, but we have a few differences with them."
Tom Osborne, president of the National Congress of State Games, said the national umbrella organization for State Games has received letters of application for membership from both Virginia groups. Osborne, who is executive director of the Big Sky (Montana) State Games, said the national congress has put the applications on hold, pending word from Wilder's office.
A State Games cannot be granted full membership in the national congress until it completes a State Games after applying for membership. The 1990 Games would fill that requirement for the groups in Roanoke and Richmond.
On Feb. 22, Osborne wrote to Wilder's office, asking the governor to make a decision on how the Virginia State Games flap will be resolved.
"What we want to see is one group running the State Games," Osborne said. "When we have two groups wanting to conduct State Games, we try to get the two together. If we can't, then we contact the governor's office. We don't get into intrastate politics.
"If the two groups can't decide, whether it's Virginia or another state, then we look to the governor to help us out. We're still waiting to hear from the governor's office. What we'd like to do is get some dialogue between the two groups, make some input so that, before a decision is made to just cut one group out, they can be encouraged to work together."
Fonder has met with Hollander and members of the Sports Virginia group several times, and the Roanoke-based Virginia Amateur Sports board decided to allow two members of the Sports Virginia board to sit on the VAS board.
"We met on Jan. 18, and I thought we had an agreement," Fonder said. "Then we were faxed a letter, and it seemed everything we agreed to had changed."
In a Feb. 2 letter, Hollander told Fonder that Sports Virginia would hold the Virginia State Games again.
"We already are having some confusion with the name Virginia State Games, having received phone calls from persons who have heard from both Virginia Amateur Sports and Sports Virginia," Hollander wrote. "For that reason, we have to insist that Virginia Amateur Sports not use the name which has been registered to us by the State Corporation Commission.
"Again, I am hopeful that we can get together in the future. In the meanwhile, we wish you success in your festival."
Virginia Amateur Sports was chartered in February 1989, then received $175,000 in state funds through the General Assembly. "We're a line item in the budget," Fonder said.
Fonder said that in April 1989, "Hollander called and said he'd heard our group had funding for doing the Games, but that the Richmonders had been thinking about doing State Games for a long time."
Fonder said Hollander asked if Virginia Amateur Sports wanted to be involved with last summer's State Games in Richmond. Fonder declined then, and he recently called the first Games "haphazard."
"They talked about a festival concept," Fonder said. "They wanted to do some of the sports in Richmond, and wanted us to do the sports they figured were more suited to this part of the state . . . like shooting and archery."
"You know the feeling in Richmond . . . We're `The Waltons' over here," said Bob Hartman, Games director for the Roanoke-based VAS.
Confusion continues. Last month, an executive from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Virginia called the Roanoke Times & World-News and inquired about the two State Games. Blue Cross and Blue Shield is a major sponsor of the Virginia CorEast State Games. "We wondered who really was holding the State Games," said the Blue Cross executive.
The answer is: both.
"We have told our sports coordinators that if they get any calls about the Games in Richmond to treat them 100 percent respectful and funnel all of those calls to us," Fonder said. "I wouldn't say this has hurt our credibility. I think, through our sports coordinators, the athletes know what we're doing.
"If we have lost credibility because of this, it's because the public isn't sure what's going on and why there are two State Games."
The Roanoke Games will include 29 sports and an estimated 4,000 athletes this summer. Virginia Amateur Sports' first budget, for 17 months, is $694,000. Hollander said the second State Games in Richmond will include at least 15 sports, with about 2,000 competitors. "I'd say our budget will be less than $20,000 to put on the State Games," Hollander said.
Hollander said he "sees no problem" with holding two State Games in Virginia - for now. Michigan and Georgia have double Games. "The first year or two, it's OK," he said, "but sooner or later, I think we're going to have to get together so as to avoid confusion. Eventually, I think we'll end up together."
A merger of the Richmond and Roanoke groups shouldn't be expected in 1991. "Give us two years, and I think I can say, yes, it will happen," Hollander said.
"I want one program. And personally, despite what some people think, I don't want it in Richmond every year. But I don't think it should be in Roanoke every year, either. I'm hopeful we can make it work together."
Fonder said, "I think Roanoke is the best place for them [the State Games]. Obviously, someone else does, too, or we wouldn't be getting state funds to run the Games.
"But whether they're in Roanoke or Lynchburg or Richmond or wherever, I think you have to have only one State Games. Otherwise, it's too confusing to the citizens."
by CNB