16. The Paris 2024 Impact on the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum with USOPM CEO Marisa Wigglesworth
Farrell Sports Business Podcast
Interviews with unicorns from sports business and their unique stories, dreams, ideas, insights, innovations, flops and career paths. Get a unique perspective of the inner workings of jobs working in sports beyond just pro sports leagues. Hosted by 30-year sports business veteran Matt Farrell, President of Farrell Sports and CEO of Bat Around.
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Episode 16 - Host Matt Farrell talks with Marisa Wigglesworth, CEO of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum in Colorado Springs, Colorado, which is Olympic City USA. She discusses the museum's mission to inspire visitors and celebrate the legacies of Olympic and Paralympic athletes. She highlights the unique visitor experience, the interactive exhibits, and the commitment to showcasing Paralympians alongside Olympians. Wigglesworth also talks about the fundraising environment for museums and the challenges they face. She shares her career journey and emphasizes the importance of loving what you do. The conversation concludes with an invitation for people to visit and engage with its offerings.
Farrell Sports Business (00:00)
On this week's Farrell Sports Business podcast, we're going to take our final, call it the bell lap around the topic of the Olympics and upcoming Paralympic games. If you're new to this podcast, give it a listen, give it a, give it a review and a follow. If you're watching, go ahead and subscribe on YouTube.
This topic is about the history and what's going on currently with the Olympics with the U S Olympic and Paralympic museum, which is based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, also known as Olympic city, USA, We're going to talk about the business side of the museum business, the current fundraising environment in the sports world, as well as the arts.
as well as touch on some of the more topical and up -to -date items that are going on in Paris now and what is making history that might resonate with fans from an experience standpoint and even from an artifact standpoint. And to our guest this week, who's the CEO of the U .S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum, there are a couple items in her sites.
that I think are truly iconic from this Paris Olympic Games in 2024. So thanks for tuning in. I think you'll enjoy this one. Continuing our Olympic theme, the CEO of the US Olympic and Paralympic Museum in Colorado Springs, Marisa Wigglesworth
Farrell Sports Business (01:43)
Marisa, so good to have you on the podcast. I appreciate you being
Marisa Wigglesworth (01:47)
Yeah, thanks so much for the opportunity. I'm looking forward to chatting with you.
Farrell Sports Business (01:51)
Well, we've got so many things to get into recent Paris trip, but let's reset and give people a little bit of context. What is the U S Olympic and Paralympic
Marisa Wigglesworth (02:03)
the U .S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum is our country's
home for the legacies of our Olympic and Paralympic athletes. We are the only one in the United States that spans the stories and the legacies of all Olympians and Paralympians across all games. We are four years old, open to the public in July of 2020. And we are a wonderful visitor experience with the mission of inspiring in all of our visitors the opportunity to pursue their
best in whatever aspect of life is most important and compelling for them.
Farrell Sports Business (02:44)
So based in Colorado Springs, known as Olympic city, USA, I'm a little partial to it. It's a phenomenal location. what about your role? And I peeked at your LinkedIn. You're just over a year into this now, maybe 14 months into it. What tell us about your
Marisa Wigglesworth (03:02)
So I came in, thank you, I came into the organization indeed just about a year ago as the CEO. And the organization had had an interim CEO for a hardy period of time before that. So I really get to come in and
wrap my arms around this organization and be a part of all of the wonderful things that they're building as a young organization, as a young museum, and really help to establish a future path and a future vision and put a whole lot of plans and pieces together to really help grow this truly amazing, amazing entity.
Farrell Sports Business (03:44)
So we're recording this with a few days left of the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games coming up. What does that do to a location like the museum in Colorado Springs during an Olympic Games in particular? Because Tokyo is probably not an apples to apples comparison for a variety of reasons. So what does the games environment do to the energy at the museum?
Marisa Wigglesworth (03:49)
Yeah. Right?
Yeah, you know, it's really been wonderful. This is my first games period here with the museum and to really see the shift in energy, the increase in visitation, the way that the colleagues and the team here gets to behave a little bit differently. It's been incredibly fun and exciting. By way of one data point, our attendance is up about 81 % since the game started in July.
compared to that same period last summer. So, you know, real clear measurables about how our audience and the community is engaging with us differently. And at the same time, we've got the games on in all of the office spaces just outside my office door here. There's a little work table with the games on. And so a number of us will sit there episodically during the day and follow whatever's happening. And it's really a great way to live our mission, rally around this
incredibly special thing that is the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Farrell Sports Business (05:16)
So you just recently got back from Paris. And so thank you for doing this so, so soon upon your return. What, what hat were you wearing in Paris and what was your experience or takeaways
Marisa Wigglesworth (05:31)
wonderful opportunity to be able to go to Paris. I have not been to a games previously. So for me, again, being new in the role as CEO of our U .S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum, I really thought it was important to go and experience it all firsthand. You really sort of don't have the same level of understanding about the energy and the operations and the interactions without being on site. So I was just so appreciative to
that opportunity. I think when I was there, I certainly went wearing my, you know, museum CEO hat initially, but in truth, you can't help but just get getting swept up into being that Team USA fan and a fan of not only Team USA athletes, but of so many athletes from around the world who are doing extraordinary things and demonstrating exceptional sportsmanship throughout the games. So I was,
I was a little bit of museum CEO, a little bit of Olympic movement leader, and a whole lot of sports fan for those great few days.
Farrell Sports Business (06:40)
that's, I certainly believe it. So you came in first games and year into this role, you come from a background of like aquariums and natural science. What, what was the attraction to this role for
Marisa Wigglesworth (06:58)
Yeah, no, it's a great question. And, you know, I would say, I would say my background very much, as you said, in that space, visitor serving attractions. So museums also hardly in there. And
I have been more than anything, a lifelong fan of the Olympics and more recently the Paralympics. So one morning as I tell it, I came down the stairs early one morning, 5 a picked up my phone to see what had transpired overnight as one does. And I saw an email about a CEO job at the United States Olympic and Paralympic Museum. And I know I said out loud to my cat, that's my job. I should go get that
because I recognized that the career I had built up into that point in working for museums and aquariums and visitor serving attractions had really given me the professional background to meet what the search committee for this job was looking for. And then to think that I could have is in my career or at that point in my career, a job all about advancing the Olympic and Paralympic values and celebrating the legacies of these
It almost felt too good to be true. Felt like the kind of thing you're working for your whole career and here was that opportunity. So it was a very good 5 a
Farrell Sports Business (08:26)
This is a longer story for another day, Marisa I'll tell you, but I had the chance to work at the U .S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee twice in my career. And this is so cheesy, but it's actually true. It's like, when you get that call, when your country calls, you answer the phone and there's something special to
Marisa Wigglesworth (08:43)
and that's something. Yeah, I want to hear that story for another day and I absolutely agree. It is such a privilege to be associated with this movement and again to support these athletes.
Farrell Sports Business (08:56)
So as you were thinking back, okay, so you're on the job now 14 months. If you think back before you came in, impressions of the job versus reality, a good, bad or indifferent, what, what's different than you
Marisa Wigglesworth (09:08)
Yeah. Yeah.
I think
sort of a sideways answer is, you know, the the Olympic and Paralympic movement, the NGB space is just incredibly complex. So while I anticipated there would be a learning curve, my goodness, I have been learning a lot every day and still have an awful lot to learn. And that's all great, right? I love to learn. I recognize I came in needing to acquire understanding in a whole lot of areas. I
think what else I have found is that this organization provides a truly extraordinary visitor experience. And for your listeners, I would offer that we stand shoulder to shoulder with any fantastic, engaging, fun museum you've ever been to, you will have a like experience here. At the same time, we've got some figuring out to do, we've got some processes and protocols
evolve as we think about what does it mean to be a museum? We offer a great visitor experience and when you walk through the galleries and exhibits you're going to learn a ton and have a fantastic time. Museums do even more than that. They're receptacles of history. They're keepers of treasures and archives and narratives and they're places for research and academia to thrive. And so we're at a point where we still have the opportunity to build all
those processes ahead of us.
Farrell Sports Business (10:49)
Well, let's maybe talk about the museum itself. I listeners, I think they know to take me with a grain of salt. I, I, I'm a little bit bias. I, I consider this museum in Colorado Springs to be a Washington DC level experience in my mind. It's just phenomenal. It's modern. It's interactive.
How would you describe what the experience is going to be like when somebody visits?
Marisa Wigglesworth (11:17)
Yes, is, the whole museum was conceptualized, designed, produced to truly meet a gold medal standard. So the building itself, as you approach, is a jewel of architectural design. It is unique, it is beautiful, it is compelling. When you step inside, you're immediately immersed in this experience
grandeur. Again, you know, meeting that the vision of the gold medal standard. So the museum is built and designed to be fully accessible. There are no stairs throughout the visitor experience. All of the interactives can be adjusted for comfortable use for somebody who, for instance, uses a wheelchair or who has different physical needs or perhaps
or perhaps is vision impaired. it really meets a very special and unique bar as far as its design and how all of the exhibits were conceptualized. When you come in, when you move through the exhibits, around every corner, you're going to see something that's, if you're a fan of the Olympics and Paralympics, you're going to see something that strikes a memory that calls you back to, remember when
Michael Johnson set the world record wearing those shoes. I remember when the miracle on ice happened, you know, underneath that scoreboard that you'll see in our exhibit. it's a, only bar setting, but bar exceeding experience.
Farrell Sports Business (13:04)
So I'd be remiss to not to mention a couple things. One, I happened to be married to an Olympic silver medalist and her leotard is in the museum, which is obviously very special on the home front.
Marisa Wigglesworth (13:14)
Indeed. Indeed.
Farrell Sports Business (13:18)
I was there in the building for Michael Johnson's world record in 1996 in Atlanta. Those gold shoes are, that's my moment that I don't care how many times I go through the museum, that's what I go
Marisa Wigglesworth (13:33)
Yeah.
Farrell Sports Business (13:33)
How about you, maybe two part question, any particular artifact you're drawn to and any particular, excuse me, any particular interactive experience that are just kind of your go
Marisa Wigglesworth (13:48)
Yeah, so I would say, know, from the interactive experience, I can't help but be charmed by and enamored with our track. And we have an interactive track where visitors are invited to race down a track in pairs, and they race the avatar of one of a selection of Olympians or Paralympians. And our visitors can choose from among this selection of athletes, whoever
you pick and, you know, Jesse Owens is probably the fan favorite, is projected at the pace at which that athlete won their Olympic medal and then you race against them. And what so charms me about it is that like, like again and again, you see these sort of everyday folks, our visitors, kids and adults, be wildly impressed.
with the speed and the capacity of these athletes in a way that, you know, when we're watching, when we're watching eight of them all race together, the hundred meters.
it's sort of hard to perceive sometimes how much faster those eight are than I am. And just every day again and again to see sort of the joy and the revelation that our visitors experience when they really understand the truly amazing things that the athletes achieve. So that, as far as just the interactive and the experience that the visitors are having, that's the one that just absolutely gets me every time.
I think that rather than the thing that's my favorite, rather than it being necessarily an artifact, it is our Parade of Nations experience. And as we were building the museum and with your wife's absolutely critical influence and assistance and insights,
You know, we came to recognize that for so many athletes, they're not going to win a medal. They're not going to step on a podium. For them, the moment is walking in in the Parade of Nations as part of the opening ceremony behind their country's flag. And so we created that experience in the museum in a way that we hope and intend gives every visitor the opportunity to put themselves in that opening ceremony as part of
an Olympic or Paralympic team. And for me, that's my favorite thing that I enjoy again and again in the museum.
Farrell Sports Business (16:21)
that's such a good, and there's so many, the video at the end, there's so many chills moment. The scoreboard from the 1980 miracle on ice is there. okay. I hate to put you on the spot, but I'm going to do it. Marisa, any, anything that you see in Paris that you just kind of have your eye on like, wow, that would, that would be incredible here at the museum.
Marisa Wigglesworth (16:25)
Yep. Yep.
Yeah, yeah,
Well, yes, thank you. You're not putting me on the spot at all. I'm happy to make the pitch. We are all a little bit charmed and enchanted by a certain US men's gymnastics pommel horse specialist and perhaps a Rubik's cube and a pair of eyeglasses. So I'll just throw that out
Farrell Sports Business (17:04)
There's a theme to me as well of 1 ,500 meters in track, magical, 1 ,500 meters in swimming, magical. maybe a theme. the glasses in the Rubik's Cube is certainly just one of the most memorable and iconic memories of this game. So I think that would be awesome.
Marisa Wigglesworth (17:10)
What an exceptional race.
Yeah, yes. yes, yes. There is a theme coming here, isn't there?
Yes, yes.
Farrell Sports Business (17:33)
So I want to shift gears a little bit and talk about the business side of the museum and maybe start broader. What is the fundraising environment like these days? And then maybe we'll draw some contrast to other industries.
Marisa Wigglesworth (17:39)
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah, so I really can speak from my experience across the museum industry specifically. And I think really what museums saw, and this is now harkening back a few years during COVID, museums, visitor -serving attractions, any sort of public -serving space, of course, had to change their business model and saw their income shift so dramatically during the pandemic. What we saw during that time, in
is that fundraising stepped up, philanthropists stepped up. They saw the organizations that they cared about struggling and recognized, you now's the time for me to really invest in what's meaningful to me. We have also seen in more recent years, however, that those philanthropists were not necessarily able to maintain that level of funding. So more recently and in the last couple of years, we've seen
museums in general philanthropy get more and more difficult. And I think that's common across the industry. And we're also seeing it here at this particular museum.
Farrell Sports Business (19:04)
Anything different in, I'm gonna generally categorize sports, any general differences of what you're seeing from a fundraising environment from sports versus the arts versus the sciences or even medical type causes?
Marisa Wigglesworth (19:23)
I think
So I think generally there are different avenues that present themselves as stronger opportunities in sports than in some other values based or cultural or educational spaces. certainly the idea of sponsorship dollars, marketing partnership dollars are generally more available in a sports space than they might be in, for
instance, a science museum or other cultural or art spaces, which is wonderful, right? That opens up opportunities for us that we may not necessarily have the chance to explore if we were a museum focused on a different topic area.
Of course, those entities are also looking for value in return for their investment. And so as a young museum, we are at a point now where we're finding our way in that. We're really building those value propositions and those compelling cases for support for our likely sponsorship or other philanthropic partners.
Farrell Sports Business (20:34)
That's helpful. I want to ask you a little bit about your early career, but forgive me. I want to take one step back and of what people should expect maybe at the museum or consumption of the Paralympic games in, in, in particular, I should have asked that that earlier, especially as that's part of your
Marisa Wigglesworth (20:52)
Yeah, no thank you.
Absolutely, absolutely. And of course, when we talk about the Paralympics, know, para means side by side. means means parallel width in that spirit. And that was very much the commitment when designing this museum and the stories and artifacts that we showcase. So throughout the visitor experience, throughout the exhibits and galleries, the visitor will see stories of Paralympians side by side and reflected
absolutely equal footing with the stories of Olympians. We made that commitment early on in the design and the concept of the museum, and it's just something we're really proud to always make a priority in our programming.
Farrell Sports Business (21:42)
I got a little bit of that out of order. And I never actually mentioned the name of my wife, Michelle Dusserre from that 84 silver medal team.
But how about you? A lot of us got the sports bug earlier in our career. Yours, well, I won't speak for you, maybe came later in your career. But what was your path to get here and any big breaks that you got along the way career -wise?
Marisa Wigglesworth (22:01)
Yeah.
goodness. I feel like just so many, right? I feel like every move I've made in my career felt like a big break and there were so many.
influences and supports at every movement that made it possible, for which I'm incredibly appreciative. So I actually, I grew up a theater kid, I was a dancer, I always had a sensibility around movement and fitness, but it was not sport.
I think I found sports as a high school student more as a fan. I wasn't playing sports at that point, but it won me over as a fan and I was following professional sports. And I was compelled by the energy and the stories and the heroism that you hear in this space. I fell into working for museums and fell in love with working for museums and sort of that led to things like the aquarium.
our national aquarium in Baltimore, Maryland, where I learned a great, great deal. But I think that, you know, I've had the opportunity to always think about, want to do a little more. I want to challenge myself more. I want to learn a little bit more as a professional, as a leader in this field. And,
And again, I've just had tremendous supporters along the way. Professional mentors who pushed me and challenged me and supported me when I said, hey, I want to try that next bigger job. And then my extraordinary husband Ed Bayruns, who every time I said, honey, I think we need to pack up our lives and move 500 or 1 ,000 or 1 ,500 miles somewhere else in the country so I can try this next new bigger job, he says, OK, let's go. So yeah, incredibly
and clearly you can hear the energy in my voice. I love what I'm doing and I'm so grateful for the opportunities I've had.
Farrell Sports Business (24:10)
You definitely live it. Can you think of one particular piece of career advice you got along the way that just really resonated with
Marisa Wigglesworth (24:18)
Ooh, oof. Yeah, right? I think that, I think that, no, perhaps. mean, no, you know, let me give you that one no. You know, the things that I would say is you know when you like what you're doing. You know when you love what you're doing. And when you find that, like lean into that. And at the same time, if you're not loving it,
Farrell Sports Business (24:20)
I know, right?
Marisa Wigglesworth (24:46)
Life's too short and the world's too big and there's something else out there. So I don't know if that's the one piece of career advice I've heard and received. That's the one piece of advice that's on the tip of my tongue to say out loud right now.
Farrell Sports Business (24:59)
With age, that one becomes more more true to me is enjoy the people and enjoy the work. I want to give you the last word. I call it shameless plug. Anything I didn't ask you, anything that you just want to make sure and pitch, if you will.
Marisa Wigglesworth (25:04)
Yes. Yep.
Appreciate
Yeah, yeah, so I thank you. Shameless plug. Many people have not yet heard of our United States Olympic and Paralympic Museum.
We are a world -class organization that is on our way to building our brand, our awareness, and our national impact so that we stand shoulder to shoulder, our rightful place, with other nationally recognized and outstanding sports halls of fame. So if you haven't heard of us yet, put us on your radar. If you're coming to Colorado Springs, come visit us. If you're not coming to Colorado Springs, look us up.
because you will find a whole lot of fun, educational, and engaging ways to be a part of what we're doing from any place in the country.
Farrell Sports Business (26:06)
Well, Marisa, thank you so much. If you weren't energized by the Olympics and upcoming Paralympics enough, this conversation will get you over the edge. So Marisa, thanks so much for taking the time to do
Marisa Wigglesworth (26:18)
It's been so fun. Thank you, Matt. I really appreciate
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