INDIANAPOLIS — It was one of the scariest times the nation had ever seen when Sarah Myer first started working to bring the largest spectacle in U.S. Olympic swimming trials history to a basketball-crazed city known for decades as the amateur sports capital of the world.
The COVID-19 pandemic was sweeping through America, canceling every sporting event from youth to pro and no one knew if this wild and crazy dream — a massive team trials in an NFL stadium — would come true.
No one knew, for that matter, if raucous crowds would ever be allowed inside arenas again. Schools were closed, restaurants had shuttered, and people were dying in hospitals alone.
But this event, the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, was a much-needed glimmer of hope for Myer that maybe, just maybe, things would one day be normal again. Indianapolis was among the cities bidding for the trials and Myer — a key player helping to pull off an entire NCAA men's tournament in a bubble in 2021 — was asked to help.
She and her Indiana Sports Corp team brought in Lilly King, an Olympian from Evansville to downtown Indy — a desert town at the time — to film a video showing what the city had to offer. The streets were empty and so was the Indiana Convention Center. Lucas Oil Stadium was dark and the canal, usually bustling with joggers and dogs and workers taking lunch breaks, was desolate.
"So, it was just a few of us in a very quiet downtown shooting a video to try to get an event," said Myer, chief of staff and strategy at Indiana Sports Corp. "And honestly we didn't even know what was happening with the world. We didn't know if this event would ever even happen."
As Myer helped with the bid, USA Swimming's Shana Ferguson was dreaming of how incredible it would be to see Olympic hopefuls in front of 16,000 fans in a stadium breaking a trials world record for the largest swim meet ever. Community leader Karin Sarratt, IU Natatorium event coordinator Arlene McDonald and Indiana Sports Corp's Ashleigh Newbold all had their own vital roles to play.
There were too many Zoom meetings to count taking place in a masked world. When restrictions were lifted and the world opened back up, there were in-person planning meetings, more Zoom calls, more phone calls and flights around the country.
There were Excel spreadsheets, ticketing plans and a laser-sharp focus to make these trials the biggest and best they could be for the nearly 1,000 swimmers vying for 52 spots on Team USA at the Paris Games.
Behind it all has been five key players — five women who gave it all — late nights, long days, early mornings, blood, sweat and, ultimately, two million gallons of water piped into Lucas Oil earlier this month to fill the massive Olympic-sized pool and its accompanying warmup pool.
Let us introduce you to the women behind the largest Olympic swimming trials ever.
Born to plan
Sarah Myer, chief of staff and strategy at Indiana Sports Corp.
Sarah Myer was always the kid her friends called to see which neighbor's yard they would be going to that day for sports and hanging out. Once in high school, she was the one they called to see what the plans were for the night. It doesn't surprise anyone who grew up with Myer in the Cleveland area she latched on to event planning for a career.
Now, it's just on a much, much bigger scale. From Final Fours to an entire NCAA men's tournament in a bubble to everything in between, Myer is now one of the key players who helped Indy land the bid to host the U.S. Olympic trials.
Background: Myer went to Butler University, bringing together her love of music (she sang and played the piano and flute growing up) and sports. While studying there, she sang in the school's acapella group, interned for the Pacers and the Indians, worked at a local radio station and — in a twist of fate — volunteered for Indiana Sports Corp when it put on the 2004 World Swimming Championships.
After college with a degree in journalism, Myer worked first at Nuvo then for the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. "I just fell in love with the city and, really, I saw my path going toward events and community," said Myer. "And so, funny enough, as I was thinking about my next step in my career, a friend of mine called me about a marketing job being open at Sports Corp."
An emotional project: Myer started at Indiana Sports Corp in April 2019 and soon learned things don't always go as planned, no matter how much planning you do. When COVID hit, everything she had been working on was canceled.
"I felt very lost at that point, obviously, because things were just in such flux with events and even with just the downtown," she said. But after proving what she was made of, helping to put an entire March Madness on in a bubble in Indy, Myer was rewarded with another big project — helping to bid on the 2024 swim trials as the event director.
Her role: "How do we sell Indy? How do we make sure these rights holders that we're pitching to know fully what we are capable of doing? And how do we take their event to the next level?" That role hasn't changed since Indy won the bid. Myer is now helping to make what the city promised happen in real time.
Beyond the job: Myer lives on the near east side with her fiancé and the two are planning a November wedding. She teaches a cardio class at the Irsay YMCA, likes to bike, write and spend time with friends and family. She's also a big Indy sports fan, going to Indians games and is a Fever season ticket holder. "I just love Indy. I love exploring it."
'I'm just ready to go'
Shana Ferguson, chief commercial officer, USA Swimming
Long before the pools were filled inside Lucas Oil with 2 million gallons of water from the White River, Ferguson had moved into the city. She lives in Colorado, but her role with USA Swimming means transplanting herself for nearly two months as the trials play out. And she is more than ready for it all to begin.
"I feel extraordinarily proud. This event, in particular, we have been working in earnest. We've been talking about doing it in an NFL stadium for five years. We've been working on Indianapolis and doing this event for three," Ferguson said. "When I say talking about it, I mean having meetings, having site visits, scoping out our plans, building our budgets. So now here we are just days out from the start and I don't want to talk about it anymore. I'm just ready to go."
Background: Ferguson grew up swimming in upstate New York and continued the sport at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. After serving in the Marine Corps, she worked in government contracting then went to grad school for an MBA in sports management. She spent 11 years at Under Armour, nine of those years leading global events, philanthropy and corporate giving. In her final two years at the company, she was head of marketing for Under Armour Canada in Toronto. Five years ago, she landed her position at USA Swimming.
Her role: Ferguson has overall executive leadership of the trials, focusing on the competition inside the stadium and the fan zone at the Indiana Convention Center. "My focus is on this swim meet and naming these athletes to the Olympic team and making sure that this meet is perfect."
Behind the black curtain: That includes all sorts of details and amenities for the athletes. Beyond the competition pool, just behind a massive black curtain that has been hung in Lucas Oil, is a massive L-shaped pool which is two pools put together. One is the same size as the competition pool and the other is a seven-lane pool that is half the length. That's where the athletes will warm up, warm down. There are also cold tubs, dozens and dozens of massage therapists, mediation space, nutrition, video games, stretching space and therapy dogs.
Her goal: "We want local folks to come and experience it. We want to fill the stadium and set a world record for the biggest, largest swim meet. That's 16,000 people. I know we can do it."
Helping serve Indy's 'special sauce'
Karin Sarratt, co-chair of U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials Local Organizing Committee, vice chair of Indiana Sports Corp board
Sarratt likes to joke she is becoming a swim nerd, thanks to Scott Davison, the CEO of OneAmerica Financial, where she works as an executive vice president.
"He's totally a swim nerd. He can recite facts that I would never ever remember about, you know, how much water is in a pool or, you know, who broke what record in some other state," she said. "That's what I love." Sarratt loves how deeply Davison, a swimmer himself, cares about the sport. So when he asked her to co-chair the local organizing committee for the 2024 trials, she said, "Why not?"
Background: When Sarratt moved to Indianapolis 11 years ago, she met Allison Melangton and expressed an interest in getting involved with Indiana Sports Corp, where Melangton served as president. "And for those that know Allison, when you tell her that, you better know that you mean it," said Sarratt, "because she's going to put you to work."
One of Sarratt's first assignments? Co-chair of the 2016 women's Final Four. She literally got thrown into the Indy sports scene, loved it and never looked back.
Her role: "So, we've been helping with some of the pitches. As you know, our community just responds to the call. They answer the call. We've talked about elevating the sport and what do we mean by elevating the sport? What USA Swimming would tell you, they've always done a great job executing the technical aspects of a swim meet. They've always done a great job of the things in the building," she said. "But what's unique about our state and our city is that we create the Indy experience. And so it's not hard to convince our community, whether it's the business partners, our politicians, civic leaders, they know the special sauce that we bring to the Indy experience."
Nerding up: "It's been more than I ever imagined in terms of the type of excitement, the amazing people that I've met on this journey, both athletes and their families. And I'm becoming a bit of a swim nerd myself, but on a scale of 1 to 10, Scott's a 15. I'm more in that 5 to 6 range, but I'm moving up a little bit."
That Eiffel Tower in Indy? She pulled that off
Ashleigh Newbold, vice president, engagement at Indiana Sports Corp.
Background: Newbold joined Indiana Sports Corp in 2017 as the director of events where she led NCAA swimming & diving championships and Big Ten basketball tournaments. Before that, she was the programs and exhibits manager at the Indiana State Fairgrounds & Events Center
Her role: Newbold is largely responsible for the party that will be USA Swimming LIVE Presented by Purdue University, which includes the replica Eiffel Tower on Georgia Street and, literally, hundreds of other moving parts, including food, nine nights of free concerts, a Starting Block Party and a tailgate type atmosphere for fans.
"If it weren't for Ashleigh and her team, we simply couldn't do it," said Ferguson. "That's how much of a leadership role she has."
A cool nod to women: To build the 66-foot, 14,000-pound replica tower, Newbold commissioned the female-led Latinas Welding Guild.
Beyond the job: Newbold said she is Indy's biggest fan. She loves exploring neighborhoods, being a local foodie, enjoying live music and art festivals and going on bike rides and adventures with her husband, Brad, and son, Van. Newbold is also a board member for IndyHub and chief of staff for WISE (Women in Sports & Events) Indy. She volunteers and fundraises for Patachou Foundation, United Way of Central Indiana and Habitat for Humanity. In 2023, Newbold was nominated for the United Way of Central Indiana ELEVATE awards as Nonprofit Employee of the Year.
Teacher turned swim meet guru
Arlene McDonald, event coordinator for the IU Natatorium
McDonald got into the sport and into her role at the IU Natatorium innocently enough, as the mother of a son who loved to swim. Matt McDonald eventually became the first Hamilton Southeastern swimmer to become an Olympic trials qualifier in 2000 at the age of 16. Arlene McDonald was his swim club president and started hosting meets at the natatorium. Soon, she gave up her teaching job and became the event coordinator at the facility.
Background: Working at the natatorium, McDonald had close ties with USA Swimming. As it brought national events to the city, she would help co-host them. She took her passion for people, teaching and swimming and pulled off amazing meets. USA Swimming took notice of this swim mom extraordinaire. McDonald became a contractor with USA Swimming for a variety of things, including giving workshops in governance.
An honor: When USA Swimming took the Olympic trials to Omaha in 2008, they asked McDonald to be the meet director of those trials. She did such an amazing job, she was tagged to be meet director in 2012, 2016 and 2020.
Her role: McDonald heads up the local part of the technical meet operations division for USA Swimming. She oversees 70 volunteer leaders that are chairing 15 different committees, helps educate them and is there to lend a hand when they need it.
"I think when you build a great team, when we recruited our chairs, it was very intentional. Train them well and let them do their jobs."
The reward: "I always tell the volunteers their takeaway really is when they see the athletes competing in Paris or on the medal stand knowing that they had a small part in their success because they are really up close with these athletes," she said. "That's amazing."
Follow IndyStar sports reporter Dana Benbow on X: @DanaBenbow. Reach her via email: dbenbow@indystar.com.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Meet the women putting on largest USA Olympic swimming trials ever
