Rebounding with a Second Curveball

Friday, March 19th, 2010

It would be tough to find any organization that has been thrown more dramatic curveballs in the month of March than Cornell University. This unprecedented month of unexpected changes is also proof that curveballs have the potential for positive change, not just trauma.

It was in early March that the Cornell community was stunned by the third apparent suicide of a student in less than a month—the second and third coming in successive days. The string of tragedies landed the Ivy League university on the front page of The New York Times and a place on almost every national news broadcast. The stories reopened the urban legend stories of Cornell as a suicide school, which has stung the school for generations.

Between 2000 and 2005, there were 10 confirmed suicides, Dr. Marchell said, and from the beginning of 2006 through the beginning of this academic year, there were none.

Dr. Marchell said he was “well acquainted with the perception of Cornell as a suicide school,” having grown up in Ithaca and graduated from Cornell. But it is an urban legend, he said, largely fueled by the fact that suicides there are often shockingly public.

“When someone dies by suicide in a gorge, it’s a very visible public act,” he said.

— The New York Times, After 3 Suspected Suicides, Cornell Reaches Out

Still reeling from this series of tragic curveballs, Cornell was suddenly thrown another curveball, one which was no less shocking, albeit in a positive way. Before the ink was dry on the suicide stories Cornell found itself a lead story in the news because of the surprising success of its men’s basketball team.

Despite being three-time Ivy League champions, Cornell was expected to exit the NCAA tournament without a win, like almost every other Ivy entrant over the years. Instead, Cornell advanced to the round of 16 in a Cinderella story that captivated much of the nation. Less than two weeks after the rash of suicides another curveball had helped turn things at least partially around. Stories were now about March Madness, Ivy League style.

“We were all checking the scores on our smartphones,” said Mr. Wolleman, a jeweler and father of four who managed to make it home to Scarsdale, N.Y., in time to watch the end of the game on TV. “This whole thing is a new experience—completely unexpected and wonderful. We’re more used to hearing about Nobel Prize winners in physics, not our athletic prowess.”

The good feelings surrounding the N.C.A.A. tournament are also helping to alleviate some of the gloom experienced by many students and alumni over the six suicides by Cornell students this school year. The most recent three occurred within weeks of one another beginning last month, all in the striking gorges on campus.

“The winter there is very long and cold and dark,” Mr. Weiss said, “and this goes a long way toward lifting the spirits on campus.”

—The New York Times, Energized by Cornell, and It’s Not Over Physics

Cornell’s March roller coaster is a reminder that curveballs can be disruptive agents for positive change, not just negative.

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Compounding Tragedy

Friday, February 19th, 2010

I’m sure the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver were a nightmare for the International Luge Federation (FIL). Every four years their sport gets a chance to come out of the shadows and take the world stage. But this time, the moment the curtain rose, they faced a terribly tragic curveball: the horrifying fatal accident of a Georgian luger flying out of the track.

Having built the fastest luge track in the world in an effort to maximize the speed and excitement of their event, the FIL blamed the dead athlete… compounding their mistakes by responding horribly to the curveball.

The federation “said what happened yesterday was because of human error,” (Georgian president Mikheil) Saakashvili said. “I don’t claim to know all the technical details, but one thing I know for sure: No sports mistake is supposed to lead to a death.”

On Friday, the luge federation…said that it’s investigation of the incident showed that “there was no indication that an accident was caused by deficiencies in the track.” Instead it said that luger Nodar Kumaritashvili “did not compensate properly to make the correct entrance” into the curve where he slid off the track at the Whistler Sliding Centre.

—Wall Street Journal, Georgia Leader Has Sharp Words for Luge Federation

Then, in contradiction of its own statements, the FIL reworked the track, slowing it down.

Overnight, race officials moved the men’s start about 100 feet lower to the women’s and doubles start, increased the height of walls and reshaped the ice to keep crashing athletes in the track. As a result, speeds decreased from 94 mph to the upper 80s, more in line with World Cup racing.

—Los Angeles Times, Slowdown is in Effect in Luge Competition

Instead of “listening to their coach” and “waiting for a pitch they could hit” the FIL blamed the victim and then overreacted. Sadly, there’s no way to bring back Nodar Kumaritashvili or console his family and friends, but I am sure that the FIL could have done better in its handling of this curveball.

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