Travis Tygart

Travis T. Tygart has worked with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) since its inception in 2000 and became USADA’s Chief Executive Officer in September of 2007, having served as its Director of Legal Affairs and General Counsel prior to becoming its CEO. As CEO, Tygart works closely with the USADA Board of Directors to carry out the organization’s mission to champion athletes to achieve their dreams in a fair and healthy way and to inspire the world. Since becoming CEO, Tygart has reached out and made himself available to many Olympic and Paralympic athletes, embracing them as an essential part of the fight against doping. Tygart was recognized for these efforts when he was awarded the USA Swimming Award in 2016 and won USA Swimming Athlete’s Appreciation Award in 2019. Under Tygart’s leadership, some of USADA’s most significant efforts to protect clean athletes have come in the form of major investigations. Working alongside federal authorities, USADA investigated the international steroid bust, Operation Raw Deal, and the international doping conspiracy involving the BALCO laboratory in San Francisco. Tygart also led the investigation into the U.S. Postal Service pro-cycling team doping conspiracy and the Lance Armstrong case. Tygart also led the international effort to advocate for justice and reform in the aftermath of the Russian state-sponsored doping scheme. This effort has ignited a movement to change the global anti-doping system to make it more independent and to give athletes a stronger voice and vote in decisions. In 2019, these efforts led to the passage of the Rodchenkov Anti-Doping Act, a landmark law that criminalizes international doping fraud. Tygart’s tenure as CEO has also produced many other achievements for clean athletes, including the groundbreaking research on the importance of true sport: “What Sport Means in America,” and the “TrueSport Report.” These efforts led to the founding of USADA’s TrueSport program, a movement to ensure all athletes have the right to healthy, safe, and good sport. Tygart is a 1993 graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel with a BA in philosophy, and after teaching and coaching high school for a few years, he earned a law degree from Southern Methodist University, where he graduated Order of the Coif. Travis received the Distinguished Young Alumni Award in 2010 from UNC-CH and the Alumni Award from SMU in 2014. He has also been recognized by Time magazine as one of the Time 100 most influential people in 2013 and was recognized by Sports Illustrated as one of the 50 Most Influential people in sport. Travis and his wife Nichole have three children, ages 24, 22, and 19.