The Scoop: FRIDAY, MAY 16

IMG pioneer Mark McCormack dies

By Sandra Harwitt
tennisreporters.net

Sports marketing genius Mark McCormack, 72, died on Friday at a New York City hospital four months after he suffered cardiac arrest on January 16. McCormack, the chairman and CEO of International Management Group (IMG), never regained consciousness after slipping into a coma on the day he was struck by a heart attack.

McCormack, an attorney who went into sports management, built his IMG dynasty into an international conglomerate that transcended the sports world. Besides for representing internationally acclaimed athletes such as Pete Sampras, Jennifer Capriati, Chris Evert, John McEnroe, Tiger Woods, Charles Barkley and Joe Montana, IMG's client list have included musicians Itzhak Perlman and Kiri te Kanawa, actresses Elizabeth Hurley and Liv Tyler, politicians Margaret Thatcher and Mikhail Gorbachev, and the world of religion by handling special events for the pope.

Larry Scott, the newly appointed WTA Tour CEO said of McCormack, "The sports world today lost one of its true visionaries with the death of Mark McCormack. No one had a bigger impact on the business of sport than Mark. He served as an inspiration for all of us. Mark and IMG have been staunch and loyal supporters of women's professional tennis from the beginning, and the WTA Tour and our sport would not be where we are today without his vision and leadership."

Mark Miles, the CEO of the ATP said of McCormack, "Mark was a visionary and a true pioneer in the development of professional tennis. No one in our industry could match his drive and effectiveness. He and the company that he founded played an important role in the birth of the remember him as a hard-nosed competitor who loved his sports."

McCormack is survived by his wife, former player Betsey Nagelsen, and their five-year-old daughter, Maggie. He also leaves behind three grown children from a previous marriage – Breck, Todd and Leslie – who all work within the IMG corporate family.

A private burial for family will be held in Chicago as well as a memorial on May 21 in New York.