As Americans were glued to their televisions for the Opening Ceremony in Beijing, RANA DERSHOWITZ found herself living out her childhood dream of attending the Games. Four years ago, the New York native moved west to the USOC’s HQs in Colorado Springs and eventually was named General Counsel and Chief of Legal & Government Affairs, a role she has held since. Dershowitz has drawn on her background as a collegiate skier at Harvard, as VP/Legal & Business Affairs at MSG and practicing law at the international firm Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson. Dershowitz chatted with staff writer Theresa Manahan earlier this week.
Favorite show at MSG: U2 at the beginning of their last tour.
Favorite place to ski: Vail.
What’s your favorite legal drama? I try not to watch legal shows. I get enough of the legal drama in my career and in my family, so I try to stay away from them.
The one sports business executive you would like to have a coffee with? MIKHAIL PROKHOROV. I think his perspective on Russia would be fascinating. Especially with the Sochi Winter Olympics coming up in 2014.
Q: How did you know you wanted a career is sports?
Dershowitz: It’s what I did in college when I wasn’t focusing on academics. I was a college athlete. I did sports broadcasting. Once I became a lawyer, I thought I wanted to try and consolidate the things that I did for fun and the things that I did for a career. My mom used to talk about how she was really proud of me because I get paid to do my hobby.
Q: How has a background in athletics -- first as a college athlete and now as a triathlete -- helped in your career?
Dershowitz: I care about the product in a way that I might not have if I wasn’t an athlete. I understand the level of commitment that goes into an athletic competition. I share a lot of the values of our athletes, of hard work and excellence and respect. I think that helps me always remember what we are trying to achieve while I’m doing my legal work.
Q: What percentage of your time do you spend protecting the trademark of the Olympics and USOC?
Dershowitz: Personally, it’s probably 10-15%. I have a staff member who spends 100% of her time doing it.
Q: What steps is your department taking in the run-up to the London Olympics to prevent ambush marketing?
Dershowitz: We are working with other members of the Olympic family, the national governing bodies, to have guidelines that we all agree on. We’re trying to educate our sponsors and educate the advertising community about the protections that the USOC has, both under trademark law but also under the Ted Stevens Act -- the special protections that Congress has given us. Including in that education the fact that the money spent in trying to protect our marks is money that is taken out of the hands of our athletes. So by ambushing the USOC, in a different way than any other sports brand, you really are hurting Team USA and our ability to support our athletes.
Q: With all the court cases in sports right now, what is one piece of advice you would give to the media covering the stories?
Dershowitz: Really try to understand the details because sometimes the details get glossed over in the press coverage because you have limited space, and the details really matter.
