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Working with Tim Chartier, the Joseph R. Morton Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science, last spring, Bezick developed an analytic tool aimed at identifying promising young skaters. 

The Question

The roots of this project stretch back a couple of years when Chartier and Dan Webb, lead analytics consultant for the USOPC, met at a conference at the Fields Institute, an international hub of mathematical research in Toronto. Meeting there is kind of like two Michelin-starred chefs meeting at Le Cordon Bleu—and Webb and Chartier immediately started cooking.

“There were a handful of professors that mentioned they were working on sourcing projects for student work,” Webb said. “And Tim was one of the ones that we moved forward with.”

Webb and the USOPC staff were hoping to capitalize on their strengths in data analysis to offset a deficiency in Olympic sports that have comparatively low participation in the United States. 

Take speed skating, for example: The pipeline of young speed skaters in the U.S. is much smaller than in perennial medal-winner Nordic and Scandinavian countries. But that doesn’t mean the U.S. doesn’t have elite athletes. Some of the nation’s most-decorated Olympians are speed skaters. Eric Heiden won five golds in 1976 and 1980. Bonnie Blair, the most decorated female U.S. winter Olympian, won five golds and a bronze as she competed in four straight Olympics (1984-92). Shani Davis won gold in 2006 and 2010, and Erin Jackson just claimed a gold in the 500 meter event in Beijing.

But finding those promising skaters is a challenge. If the USOPC could provide a tool to help identify them earlier—when they are still junior athletes—the speedskating organization could concentrate on developing them into medal-winners.

“We've been curious what we can learn from the junior data,” Webb said. “We wanted to see if there’s anything there that we can use to project future elite performance.”

And they wanted Chartier and a Davidson student to help answer that question.

Chartier, who helped found , the student sports analytics group, recognized the unique opportunity. So, he asked his colleagues in the Mathematics and Computer Science Department whether they knew a student who could handle the work and impress the USOPC.

Bezick’s name came back over and over again.

Already, he’d developed a reputation as an expert in data visualization and analysis. 

Bezick had worked on interactive maps and for the and developed Davidson’s Covid-19 dashboard that helped the community navigate the return to campus in fall 2020.

He also did some work through the program at the , where he built data dashboards for a healthcare consultant. That work went so well that Bezick co-founded a software company called GatherWare before graduation. During his senior year, he and his partner’s pitch won the top prize in the 2021 Venture Fund competition, a $25,000 equity investment. He now works out of the Hurt Hub, building the new company.

Bezick brought more than just skill to the project however. He brought passion. Despite growing up in south Florida, Bezick had spent a lot of time on the ice as a skater and hockey player. Hockey was a family hobby. In fact, his younger brother is currently playing professional minor-league hockey in Amarillo, Texas.

When Chartier reached out, Bezick jumped at the chance. 

“I was interested right away,” Bezick said. “It’s not too often you get to work with a group like the USOPC.”