Colorado Springs, Colo. (June 24, 2021) — The Ultimate Hall of Fame Board of Directors is pleased to announce the kick-off of the 2021 Ultimate Hall of Fame selection process. Updated documents and details about the process have been posted on the Resources page of the USA Ultimate website.

As announced in 2020, the Ultimate Hall of Fame (HoF) established an independent board of directors to support the work of the Hall and our partnership with USAU. For 2021, the board has expanded the Vetting Committee – the group that manages the overall Hall selection process.

For 2021, the Vetting Committee includes women’s division peer pool co-leaders Dominique Fontenette (HoF ‘18), Vivian Zayas (HoF ‘20) and Lori Parham Ewald (HoF ‘19). Coordinating the open division peer pool is the team of Keay Nakae (HoF ‘12), Steve Dugan (HoF ‘17) and Jeff Cruickshank (HoF ‘17). Finally, leading the contributors’ peer pool is Robert “Nob” Rauch (HoF ‘06). 

The Vetting Committee is also joined by board members Chris O’Cleary (HoF ‘13), Billy Rodriguez (HoF ‘15), HoF Board President Pat King (HoF ‘09) and Committee Chair and HoF Administrator Suzanne Fields (HoF ‘04). Steve Mooney (HoF ‘06) will also participate as the USAU board representative. Pam Kraus (HoF ‘17) continues as a member of the Vetting Committee in an advisory capacity and in her role in leading a mixed division task force.

The open and women’s division peer pool coordinators are currently working to update their respective peer pools for the 2021 campaign and are focused on those who competed at the highest levels of the sport from 2001 to 2008. The updated player-division peer pool membership lists will be posted when available in late July. For the contributor peer pool, a task force composed of contributor members of the Hall has been convened to select their candidates for the contributor category.

On the USAU Resources page, you will find an abundance of resources, including the Hall of Fame Selection Process Steps and Timeline, Nomination/Candidate information and Reference forms for the open and women’s divisions, and Player-Candidate Questionnaires. We encourage you to read all of the posted resources as we’ve made several important updates!

Please feel free to reach out to the Ultimate Hall of Fame with any questions via email at ultimatehalloffame@gmail.com.

About the Hall

The Ultimate Hall of Fame honors the sport’s past and celebrates its greatest players and contributors. While the Hall’s primary purpose has been to identify individuals who have made substantial contributions to our sport, the organization’s goals go beyond a celebration of past excellence. We hope to partner with organizing bodies worldwide to collect, preserve and reveal the sport as it continues to evolve, linking its colorful and festive past with a remarkable present and a promising future.

Although the Ultimate Hall of Fame remains a “virtual” hall for the time being, the long-range goal is to establish a permanent physical space where our history can be preserved and shared.. In the meantime, the inductees are currently honored with a plaque at the USA Ultimate headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colo. The formal induction ceremony and celebration, which is held every five years in conjunction with the ultimate players’ alumni reunion, was last held in 2018 alongside the USA Ultimate National Championships in San Diego, CA. The next formal induction ceremony will be held in 2023 at the National Championships (location TBD) and will be the 55th anniversary of the founding of the sport.

Selection Process

To be inducted into the Ultimate Hall of Fame, potential player-candidates must complete these steps. The first stage involves “peer voting” where nominees/candidates are reviewed and ranked by a group of players from their own playing era. The second stage involves winnowing the field down to a slate of candidates through a review of the peer voting results and of written applications solicited by the Ultimate Hall of Fame Vetting Committee, with up to eight candidates from each player division selected. For 2021, contributor candidates will be nominated by the contributor members of the Hall. 

The final slate of candidates is then announced to the ultimate community with a public request for comment in the Call to the Community. The final stage involves two rounds of voting to select up to four inductees from each player division by the full voting committee, composed of eligible player and contributor members of the Ultimate Hall of Fame and the Vetting Committee. An inductee must receive an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds majority (66%) from the voters to be selected and thereafter be inducted into the Ultimate Hall of Fame. Please note that the player peer pools are now being updated for 2021.

Important Resources

To nominate a player for the Ultimate Hall of Fame or as a member of the Peer Pools: