List Of Most Influential People In Oregon Sports Is Light On Females

Nike co-Founder PHIL KNIGHT has been named the most influential person in Oregon sports by the Portland OREGONIAN's John Canzano, but the "glaring problem" in his list is that "only two of the Top 25 individuals this year are women." In Oregon, women who "rise in sports corporations are more likely found working in community relations and marketing roles," but something about that "feels wrong." Canzano: "So where are the powerful and influential women? Where are the female sports executives? Where are the women in sports in our state who carry true clout?" Portland Thorns and Timbers Owner & CEO MERRITT PAULSON, who comes in at No. 4, said, "It's an industry issue and we can do better with it ourselves." Canzano noted D-III Willamette Univ. AD VALERIE CLEARY "served a four-month stint at Portland State" as interim AD after TORRE CHISHOLM resigned. But after the hiring, Cleary "briefly went back to her role at PSU as 'Senior Woman Administrator' before leaving for" the AD job at Willamette. Cleary said that she "believes there's another issue at play" about the lack of women in high-level sports jobs. Cleary: "The work-life balance is often difficult for women. Athletics isn't a 9-to-5 (work day). Depending on their family structure, goals, support ... many women don't pursue higher-level jobs. Or there's an unspoken bias on how women will balance work life" (OREGONLIVE.com, 8/27).