The family of the man who represented star athletes such as golflegend Arnold Palmer and who is widely regarded as the founder ofthe modern sports management industry is turning over his archivesto the University of Massachusetts Amherst, the school announcedyesterday.
The archives of Mark H. McCormack - who founded InternationalManagement Group in 1960 and who died in 2003 at the age of 72 -will be delivered in installments over the next year to theuniversity's W.E.B. Du Bois Library. The library will work with theschool's sport management department in the Isenberg School ofManagement to digitize much of the collection for use byresearchers and students worldwide, the school said.
The family wanted to preserve the archives at a school with asports management program and chose UMass Amherst largely becauseits faculty is the most experienced in the country, said McCormack'sson, Todd of Newton, the senior corporate vice president at New York-based IMG.
'My father always had a mantra,' McCormack said in a telephoneinterview. 'Whenever we were getting into a new sport or a new area,it was always, `Who is the best in this business right now?' '
The archives of the elder McCormack, who grew up in Chicago, arecurrently in thousands of boxes, the school said in a statement.They contain letters to athletes such as Palmer and fellow golfgreat Jack Nicklaus, sports memorabilia, and IMG corporate papers.
Todd McCormack, 50, said the archives include a two-pagehandwritten letter that Australian tennis star Rod Laver sent to hisfather in the 1960s. In the letter, Laver sought representation ashis career was just beginning to take off. It recalls an era whenathletes did not always expect large endorsement deals and otherperks as soon as they turned pro, Todd McCormack said.
'It's those types of little gems where you get a sense of historyand how things have evolved and changed,' he said.
The family is also providing a $1.5 million gift to the schoolfor related education initiatives, including a program to bringsports industry executives to campus to mentor students. Theendowment will also provide funding for students and faculty totravel abroad for research, the school said, and will supportstudies at the Center for Spectator Sport Research, located oncampus.
Todd McCormack said the archives themselves have a tremendousamount of educational value for students, a contention supported bythe biography of his father posted on the school's website.
The company McCormack founded after reaching a handshakeagreement with Palmer went on to sign Nicklaus, Laver, golf andbranding icon Tiger Woods, former Red Sox slugger Jim Rice, formerNFL running back Herschel Walker, and tennis titans John McEnroe,Pete Sampras, and Monica Seles.
Trans World International, the IMG broadcast division, is theworld's largest independent TV sports production company and rightsdistributor, according to the biography.
UMass Amherst will honor McCormack's legacy with its stewardshipof the archives, Chancellor Robert C. Holub said in a statement.
'I want to thank the McCormack family for selecting UMass Amherstas the steward of this unparalleled gift, which constitutes thesingle most significant collection documenting the growth anddevelopment of the sport management and marketing industry,' Holubsaid.
Travis Andersen can be reached at tandersen@globe.com.
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