PUSH Magazine, Industry Spotlight, Heath Aucoin, Fort Worth Sports Commission

What’s your current position?

Director of Operations.

How long have you been in this position?

I have done operations for Fort Worth Sports since March 2020 (I started a week and a half before COVID shut down the world). Have done event operations in sports tourism since 2004, beginning at the Baton Rouge Area Sports Foundation under the tutelage of the one and only Vince Trinidad.

Can you give us a brief overview of what you do in your work?

Once we book an event, I am the middleman working with the governing body, the venue, and other spaces the event will use. Depending on the type of event, I can take a more hands-on operations approach in managing aspects of the tournament/championship or managing LOC’s.

What would you say most motivates you to do what you do?

I enjoy working with event organizers and athletes passionate about their sport. We partner with event organizers that sacrifice so much to produce events. I want to help make their job easier. If they can sleep easier when they come to Fort Worth, that is what I strive for.

What are you most excited about or passionate about?

Working on high-level events with good people. I enjoy taking an event with many moving parts and collaborating with others to make things come together.

What are the goals you most want to accomplish in your work?

To build long term relationships with clients.

What about the goals you hold personally?

A personal goal of mine is not to let the work consume me as it has in the past. We can do an excellent job for clients without running ourselves into the ground. You can have a strong work ethic and know when to turn that on.

What led you to this industry?

I really stumbled into things. I was getting my MBA during the economic downturn, and finance jobs were not plentiful. I needed an internship, so one of my co-workers at LSU Career Services asked if I wanted to work on sporting events. I was paid with jambalaya and beer for the next two years, helping with their events. What led me to Fort Worth was being closer to my son, who was in New Orleans at the time but is now living North of San Antonio.

What were you doing before you came here?

Immediately before moving to the Sports Commission, I worked for the Cowtown Marathon doing road race operations. The Cowtown is a 20,000+ person two-day running event. Before that, I was Vice President of Operations for Tulsa Regional Tourism. I managed the event operations for Tulsa Film Commission, Visit Tulsa, and the Tulsa Sports Commission. I was also the Race Director for the Tulsa Run 15k.

What attracted you to work for the Fort Worth Sports Commission?

Even though I moved to Fort Worth to work in the road race space, I still wanted to stay involved with sports tourism. I didn’t want to close that door in my career yet, so I reached out to Jason Sands to say I would be more than willing to help with events by sitting on a committee. When the job opened, Jason gave me a call, and it seemed to be a good fit with what they were looking at doing to grow the organization.

Where did you grow up?

Berwick, Louisiana. Small town of about 4,000, about 60 miles South of Baton Rouge.

What was it like to grow up there?

It was a great place to grow up. Everyone knew each other in our town. With not much to do we played a lot of sports in the streets of my neighborhood. I had the generic kid of the 80’s life. South Louisiana’s culture is special and a big part of who I am. I spent summers in Scott, Louisiana (Boudin Capital of the World) with my dad and stepmom.

I worked every summer starting at age 5, picking up cigarette butts around my dad’s shop. Taught me the value of hard work.

Did you go to college? Where did you go, and what was that like?

I attended LSU for undergraduate (Finance) and masters (Business Administration). My goal in life was to attend LSU. I was the first person in my family to go to college.

I had six majors, so I really didn’t know what I wanted to do with myself after college. With the guidance of student leaders and administrators, I gained the confidence to take leadership roles with some of the larger student organizations at LSU. Of course, I went to as many sporting events as I could. LSU Baseball was at the peak of its dominance in the 90’s, and even though our football team was not great, Tiger Stadium is always a special place to see a game.

LSU taught me more about the value of people and how to be a leader than things that I learned in a book. I also went to a party or two there… My name is on a plaque in a bar.

Did you have any key mentors or people who profoundly influenced who you are, what you believe in, and what you’re committed to in your work and life?

My parents were great role models, and each showed me what it is to be a good person in their own way.

My dad is the most personable person you will ever meet and has never met a stranger. He did sales for a living and showed me that you are not only selling a product you are really selling yourself. A product is a product; people do business with someone because they trust that you will produce what you say you will. My dad also lived about an hour and a half away from where I went to school. He didn’t miss any of my baseball games during my senior year in high school. He showed me a model of commitment that I mirrored to see my son after I was divorced.

My mom pushed my brother and me to dream big, and she never said no if we wanted to do something. She let us try things out to allow us to get out there and succeed or fail. She trusted that we would make good decisions and gave us a leash to follow through.

My stepmother is a fantastic woman. I saw her struggle through being passed over because of her race and gender in the corporate world, and she still pushed through to become successful. She always has a positive mindset and puts others ahead of herself.

Professionally speaking

Vince Trinidad is my mentor and a friend. He is one of the most genuine people that I know. He hired me into this industry almost 20 years ago and has given me more than I could ever give in return. He is selfless, from throwing me into the deep end of events with no experience (and fully expecting me to get the job done) to giving me his appointment schedule at a show because my organization couldn’t afford the cost of setting meetings. I was lucky to work with him again in Tulsa, and he built a great team there. If I need anything, I know he is ready to give his help and advice.

What projects are you working on now?

USOPC

Currently, we are honing in on our USOPC strategy as an organization. Through the end of the year, we have USA Table Tennis, USA Taekwondo, USA Fencing, and USA Wrestling in town. We are in talks with multiple other organizations about doing events in Fort Worth over the next few years. We know how the spotlight will shine even brighter on the Olympics in LA in 2028, so how do we position ourselves to best take advantage of this?

Our success stems from Jason and Cassie committing to putting dollars and resources toward USOPC events. They sponsored socials at TEAMS and put the time in one-on-one to get us over the hump with getting our first event a few years back.

Covid accelerated this plan with Texas being an open state. We positioned ourselves as a location to fall back on if previously selected locations could not host events. From this, we hosted USA Wrestling Olympic Team trials and were a few governing bodies first or second event coming out of the pandemic. - This also put stress on our staff as we had to turn the events in a few months most of the time once awarded. We knew this was an opportunity that we could not mess up, so there were many late nights and conference calls to ensure everything went smoothly.

To be honest, I never thought I would be in a place to work on an Olympic Trials. Being a part of an event that had some much on the line and so much emotion was memorable for me. Also, seeing the wrestlers who finished their careers take off their shoes on the mat was moving. Seeing the culmination of so much work put in by these athletes is always inspiring.

Upcoming Events

16th World Wushu Championships: We started working on this event on March 10, 2020, the day before the OKC Thunder game was canceled to start the closure of events. Through various delays and adjustments with the event, we are finally a couple of months from hosting. This is also one of our first international events, so learning how international governing bodies communicate has been a learning process.

Halo Championship Series: After hosting the Rocket League World Championships last year we are focusing on larger Esports events. This is another feather in our cap for this part of sports tourism, and we are looking forward to learning more about these groups.

Future Years: 2026 is a big year for us as the metroplex hosts the FIFA World Cup. That year we’ll also hosted the FEI Show Jumping and Dressage World Cup and NCAA Women’s Basketball Regionals. Next year we host NCAA Gymnastics again (host through 2026), PBR World Finals, MLB All-Star Game (working with Arlington). We have a few significant events that we are going to announce soon and are chasing a few events that will show we can continually host marquee sporting events.

Heath, you are known in the industry as a professional that cares and puts great drive and determination into his work… You’re an example of someone that can always be counted on. What gets you out of bed every day to continue this work ethic?

I don’t think I know of any other way to operate. My parents instilled a work ethic in me to do my best with everything I do and not disappoint people. You must earn the respect of others, and my goal is to show people they can trust me to get the job done.

We are lucky to be in an industry where we can do business with our friends, and I never want to let one of my friends down. I also want to ensure I support the Fort Worth Sports team. We can only be our best if I put everything I can into our events.

Over the years, your colleagues have enjoyed seeing your running race pursuits. What attracts you to the physical act of running?

I didn’t think I would ever be a runner, but when I became a race director, I needed to know what I asked people to do to participate in our race. I worked with various running groups and met a great community of people who were out to improve their lives through running. Many days are not easy, but pushing through lets me know I can get through anything with enough mental fortitude. I also love the outdoors so I get out on trails as much as I can and truly disconnect.

What motivates you to do so?

I am working on running a half marathon in all 50 states. I am on state number 18 so that keeps me hitting the pavement. When you sign up for a race you must put in the work, or you will pay on race day. Is running a coping method for the stresses of everyday life and responsibilities? Running helps with stress levels and my mental health. I can either disconnect from the world on a run or think through things I need to process that could be a struggle to sit with. I also know that when I am running, I am putting my health and myself first, which we sometimes sacrifice for getting our work done.

What would you say are your best skills?

I put myself in other people’s shoes and think from their perspective. I enjoy working on complex event logistics and problem-solving on the fly.

What do you bring to the table that helps you rise above the rest?

My work ethic to complete a task, no matter how big or small, is essential for my success. I think critically about how to solve problems and go through various situations before making a decision.

Where and how did you learn those skills?

Over the years, I tried to copy the best characteristics of the leaders I saw in the industry and copy them. Being aware of how someone got to a final decision or completed a process (good or bad) is invaluable.

What’s next for you in your work?

I just take things day by day. We have a lot of exciting events over the next three years here in Fort Worth, so I want to make sure we are well-prepared for those. We are growing our team, and I want to ensure we have a great culture to participate in. How our team gels with growth gets us to the next level as an organization.

What are you looking forward to down the road in your career?

I am trying to figure that out as we speak. I have done operations for 20 years now, and my next step is still up in the air. I still help with road races when I can, and I hope to assist if there are other events that people need help with. If you have an event that you need help with, let me know! I also look forward to winning the lottery.