The Ombuds Blog: US Olympic Ombuds Helps Athletes in Conflict

December 27, 2007

US Olympic Ombuds Helps Athletes in Conflict

Since 1999, John Ruger has been the athlete ombudsman for the United States Olympic Committee. He receives about 500 inquires a year and provides independent advice to Olympic hopefuls, assists in mediating disputes, and helps develop USOC policy. The majority of athletes coming to Ruger have questions about a team-selection process, doping cases or their rights regarding endorsements. He was quoted prominently in two articles on Boxing Day. (New York Times; Washington Post.)

1 comment:

Anonymous12/28/2007 7:02 AM
Ombudsman for Olympic athletes. That is a joke! He is paid for by the USOC and that is where his loyalties reside. PERIOD.
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Organizational Ombuds

Organizational Ombuds serve as a confidential, independent, neutral and informal dispute resolution resource for a specific entity. They are accessible to a defined population and can advocate for fairness. These unique characteristics distinguish Organizational Ombuds from Classical Ombuds, mediators, arbitrators, and other alternative dispute resolution professionals. The term "Ombuds" is shorthand for "Ombudsman," "Ombudsperson" and "Ombuds Officer," which also are used widely.

Some other variants include:

Austria -- Ombudsstelle

Brazil -- Ouvidor

Croatia -- pravobranitelji

France -- médiateur/defénseur

Germany -- Ombudspersonen

Italy -- difensore

Netherlands -- ombudspersoon

Norway -- ombudet

Poland -- Rzecznik

Portugal -- provedor

Russia -- омбудсмен

Spain -- ombudsman organizacional

Sweden -- studentombud

Switzerland -- ombudsmann

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