Dr. Roger Goudy Re-elected as AAU President

CLEVELAND, Ohio (October 20, 2018) - The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), one of the largest, non-profit multi-sport amateur sports organizations in the world, announced Dr. Roger J. Goudy of Madison, Ohio, won another four-year term as President/CEO during elections at the 126th AAU National Convention held at the Hilton Cleveland Downtown.

Dr. Goudy, the 47th president of the AAU,  is the first AAU President from Ohio since 1947. He was superintendent of the Madison County School District from 2008 -2015. Prior to that, Dr. Goudy was the Director of Business Affairs at South Euclid Lyndhurst Schools for 10 years. 

 "The AAU has been raising champions on and off the court for more than a century," said Dr. Roger J. Goudy, President/CEO of the AAU. "I am blessed and humbled to be re-elected to lead this Union. I truly believe through sport, we change the world, one athlete, coach, parent and team at a time."

Joining Dr. Goudy in leading the AAU is the following AAU national officer group including another Ohio native, AAU Second-Vice President Joe Gura:

First Vice-President: Jennings "Rusty" Buchanan was re-elected as First Vice-President of the AAU.  He has been involved with AAU for more than 35 years, competing as first an athlete in track & field and later as a volunteer starting with the 1989 AAU Junior Olympic Games and AAU Boys Basketball. From 1997 - 2016, Rusty lead one of the first Florida sport commissions bodies through Space Coast Sports Promotions, a non-profit, 501-C3, sports management organization that hosted more than 60 major sporting events in the Space Coast, Florida area.

Second Vice-President: Joe Gura was newly elected as Second Vice-President of the AAU. An Avon, Ohio native, Mr. Gura, has been a fixture in the Ohio amateur sports scene for more than 35 years. A longtime AAU volunteer, administrator and gymnastics coach, he was named to the Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame in 1992. He is most known for chairing the AAU Cares and Proud initiatives.

National Secretary: Cynthia Trombly-Martin was re-elected as National Secretary of the AAU. A longtime AAU volunteer, Ms. Trombly-Martin was governor of the Michigan AAU district from 1990 through 2018.  A fixture in AAU Wrestling, she helped found the AAU Michigan State Wrestling Association in 1981 and has been to every AAU Convention since 1988.

National Treasurer: J.B. (Jo) Mirza was re-elected as National Treasurer of the AAU. An AAU member since 1972, Mr. Mirza has been the national chair for the AAU Karate program since 1987 and on the AAU Board of Directors since 1994. Mr. Mirza has been an integral part of Central AAU district since 1982 serving in various capacities including governor.

Prior to the AAU presidency, Dr. Goudy served as AAU national secretary for 20 years, taking office in 1994. He was part of the AAU national officer group that signed a 30-year deal with the WALT DISNEY WORLD Company in 1996.  Later that year, the AAU relocated its national headquarters to Orlando, Florida becoming one of two anchor tenants at what is now the world-renown ESPN Wide World of Sports® Complex (the Atlanta Braves being the other), a state-of-the-art facility that has become the benchmark for youth athletic facilities and where more than 40 AAU national events are conducted annually.

Dr. Goudy has been with the AAU for more than 40 years, serving as AAU Volleyball National Chair for 27 years and overseeing sport growth from 14,000 members in 2000 to more than 150,000 members in 2018, making it the second largest sport in the AAU next to basketball.

The AAU Junior Volleyball National Championships, the largest volleyball event in the world as determined by Guinness Book of World Records, attracted a record 2,758 boys and girls teams in 2018 over a 12-day period, bringing 42,000 participants and generating an economic impact of $91,000,000 to the local Central Florida area.  Over the years, this event has featured international teams from Australia, Brazil, Croatia, Canada, China, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Haiti, Honduras, Israel, Germany, Mexico, Peru, Puerto Rico, Slovenia, Spain and Virgin Islands.

"The AAU is uniquely positioned to provide athletic participation opportunities here in the United States as well as abroad," said Dr. Roger J. Goudy, President/CEO of the AAU. "We will continue to expand and grow our event programming to provide Sports For All, Forever."

Honors and awards include 2018 Orlando Business Journal CEO's of the Year, 2017 and 2018 Sports Events Magazines Event Planners to Watch and 2017 National Association of Sports Commissions Event Organizer of the Year.  In 2016, Dr. Goudy was named to Visit Orlando's Board of Directors.