Perhaps not since the passage of Title IX in 1972 has there been such tremendous upheaval in amateur women’s athletics. So, this year, in celebration of National Girls & Women in Sports Day, the UB Center for the Advancement of Sport will host a panel discussion of prominent women titled, “From the Intramurals to the Olympics: The Changing Dynamic in Girls’ & Women’s Athletics”. We are excited to host D’Ann Keller, UB’s Deputy Director of Athletics/Senior Woman Administrator, Vicki Mitchell, Director & Head Coach of UB’s Men’s & Women’s Cross Country and Track & Field Programs, Sharon Sanford, Senior Associate Athletic Director for Recreation & Sport Management at UB, and Kristen Thorsness, Esq., Of Counsel, Bond, Schoeneck & King, Arbitrator, Court of Arbitration for Sport (including Paris 2024), and 1984 Olympic gold medalist (rowing).
The virtual panel discussion is co-sponsored by the UB Law Alumni Association, and it will be moderated by UB Law alum Marissa Egloff ’22 and current students Alex Brockhuisen ’25 and David Reinharz ’25. To join us in this stimulating discussion of the evolution of women’s amateur sports, register at: https://www.law.buffalo.edu/news/sports-law-round-table.html
Helen A. “Nellie” Drew is an expert in sports law, including professional and amateur sports issues ranging from NCAA compliance and Title IX matters to facility construction, discipline of professional athletes, collective bargaining and franchise issues. Drew formerly served as an officer and in-house counsel to the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League, after previously working as outside counsel to the Sabres and the NHL. Among her more interesting experiences were assisting former USSR superstar Alexander Mogilny in obtaining asylum status in the U.S. and working on multiple NHL expansions, including San Jose, Ottawa, Florida and Tampa Bay.
Drew teaches a variety of courses that incorporate topics such as drug testing in professional sports and professional player contract negotiation and arbitration. She is especially interested in the evolving research and litigation concerning concussions in both amateur and professional sports.
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