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Advisory Board
Melissa Davis
When Ms. Erde met Melissa Davis, she knew right away that Ms. Davis would be the perfect Sports Director for Greenwich 1-on-1. Besides the fact that Ms. Davis is actually an athlete (helpful for a sports company,) she was also Director of Youth Recreation and Client Relations for Coast Sports, one of the largest and most respected youth recreation organizations in Los Angeles. There, she helped create the wildly popular Soccer Moms program. Ms. Davis has worked as a media planner for KSL, an advertising firm in New York City, as marketing associate at Premiere Radio Networks, and in the New Business Development office at Sports Illustrated.
A graduate of Lafayette College, where she played varsity soccer and earned a B.A. in Psychology, she is an elite competitive runner and certified personal trainer who has completed the Los Angeles marathon and recently finished third overall (women) in the Ridgefield half marathon. Ms. Davis lives in Ridgefield with her husband and sons.
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Seth Davis, CBS Sports Analyst, Sports Advisor
Seth Davis is working his sixth year as a contributor for CBS Sports' coverage of the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship. He joined CBS Sports in 2003 as a contributor for AT THE HALF®, the Network's college basketball halftime show. In 2004 Davis was a reporter for CBS Sports' THE NFL TODAY. He writes features for Sports Illustrated, and has contributed to the magazine's "Golf Plus" since 1995.
Davis is a regular contributor to SI.com, where he authors his popular "Hoop Thoughts" column. Prior to joining Sports Illustrated, he spent three years at the New Haven Register, covering primarily local sports, the NFL, NBA and college basketball. He is the author of a memoir, Equinunk, Tell Your Story: My Return to Summer Camp, which was published in 2003 by Chandler House Press. Davis graduated in 1992 with a degree in political science from Duke University where he served as a sports columnist for The Chronicle.
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John Meindl, SPORTSBRANDEDMEDIA, INC., Sports & Media Advisor
John Meindl is founder and president of SPORTSBRANDEDMEDIA, INC., a company that provides a convergence of sports and entertainment. With expertise across all sports disciplines and media platforms, Mr. Meindl is the creator of “sports” product placement and the first to combine that specialty with expertise in sport marketing, branding and coordination to provide total sports solutions in mass media. Mr. Meindl brings a unique perspective and sports business acumen to both industries.
Recently, he coordinated all non-theatrical elements, including product placement, in a multi-million dollar sport set/scenes in “Failure to Launch,” a Paramount Production, starring Matthew McConaughey and Sarah Jessica Parker. Over the past two years, Mr. Meindl and his company have provided sports solutions to countless major productions starring the likes of Al Pacino, John Travolta, Robin Williams, Jane Fonda, Lindsay Lohan, Halle Berry, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis and more. John got his start in film as executive producer on an award winning indie starring three members of “The Sopranos.”
Mr. Meindl is the former owner of a large sporting goods company and presently an Adjunct Professor of sport marketing. With almost 20 years in the sports business, he is a published writer and speaker in the areas of sports marketing and sports production. A former soccer goalkeeper and college head coach, Mr. Meindl has been a strong advocate for inner city and underprivileged youth…. “Using sport as a vehicle to include the excluded.” He is the youngest board member appointed to the Nassau County Sports Commission, where he was a member of the selection committee for the inaugural “John Mackey Award,” given to the nation’s top college (1-A) tight end, along with Mark Bavaro, Kellen Winslow, Keith Jackson and members of the sports media. Mr. Meindl has also served on the Business Advisory Board, LIU-Southampton College, and the Board of Directors for the YMCA of Greenpoint. John was recently a partner in an historic event to launch Yellow Ribbon Racing, a non-profit, “Support the Troops” Indy Racing League Team (IRL).
Gil Fried, Gil Fried & Associates, Advisor
Gil Fried, M.A., J.D. Professor
Chair Sport/Hospitality and Tourism Management Department
Coordinator Graduate Program in Management of Sports Industries/Facility Management
University of New Haven
Gil Fried is a Professor at the University of New Haven, School of Business, in the Management of Sports Industries Program. Professor Gil Fried is a specialist in sport law, finance, and facility management. He received his masters in sport management and his law degree from The Ohio State University. He has written several books on sport risk management, sport facility management, and sport finance. One of the six books he wrote is the Academy for Venue Safety and Security (AVSS) textbook used by the International Association of Assembly Managers. His other textbooks are used in over 100 universities in the United States. He lectures nationally on financial risk management, facility risk management, crowd management/venue safety, and sports violence. Besides, UNH, Prof. Fried also teaches as an adjunct at Sy Syms School of Business at Yeshiva University and Columbia University.
He has handled a large number of sport/music industry cases and has worked as an expert witness in various cases from stadium stampedes to foul ball cases. Some of his cases have involved significant national attention such as the Camp Randall stampede (University of Wisconsin), the Aramark Meadowland drunk driving case, and the basketball crowd rush case (Kaye) in Phoenix. He also serves on several board of directors of sport related businesses and organizations. He has an active consulting practice called Gil Fried & Associates, LLC and has several major clients from corporations to insurance companies.