The term "Final Four" will no longer be used to describe the men's portion of the NCAA basketball tournament due to the increasing popularity of the women's final four tournament, NCAA officials recently decided.
Traditionally, the athletic world has used the term "Final Four" as shorthand for the men's basketball championship tournament. The women's equivalent was called the "Women's Final Four," suggesting that it was secondary to the men's tournament, said Percy Bates, a faculty representative to the Board in Control of Intercollegiate Athletics at its monthly meeting yesterday.
Although there was opposition from officials outside the University to continue calling the men's tournament the Final Four, the University was strongly behind the NCAA's decision.
"The men's final four will be referred to as the Men's Final Four. The women's final four will be referred to as the Women's Final Four," Bates said.
In situations where the reference to the tournament is not related to gender, the generic term "Final Four" will be used, Bates said, addressing trademark and merchandise concerns.
Board members discussed this NCAA decision and several other issues regarding gender, including the University's progress on Title IX requirements. Title IX is the federally mandated act that has forced universities and other federally funded institutions to enact gender-equal practices.
"Our position as it relates to gender is to take a leadership role and make opportunities available for women athletes at the University of Michigan," Athletic Director Tom Goss said.
The University is using the maximum number of scholarships provided for women's athletics, Goss said. But the University needs to continue making progress in the way of paying women's athletic coaches a salary equal to men's athletics coaches.
The disparity between the salaries of men's sports coaches and women's sports coaches, Goss said, is a result of the high market price for men's football and basketball coaches. All salaries are based on tenure, performance and the market for the sport.
The travel budget, facilities, tutoring opportunities, publicity and recruitment budget, Goss said, are appropriated in equal amounts for men's and women's sports.
The Athletic Department requires each team to have a goal number of players. This practice is called roster management and women's teams have a higher goal number of players.
The board members also discussed the Athletic Department's ongoing search for a women's waterpolo coach. The search committee is now interviewing candidates on the west coast - which the Athletic Department feels is the strongest region in the nation for the sport.
"We feel very confident that we will get a very good waterpolo coach," Goss said.
11-05-99
| Previous Article | Next Article |
should be sent to: daily.letters@umich.edu | should be sent to: online.daily@umich.edu |