OFFICE CHANGES
The front offices at two pro sport franchises in Vancouver may not have any new faces, but this month familiar faces have new roles and responsibilities.
Wally Buono, the winningest coach in CFL history, is no longer at the helm of the B.C. Lions. However, he remains at the helm. He is still the club's general manager and is now also the vice-president of football operations.
Club president and CEO Dennis Skulsky said emotions were mixed. Buono, who joined the Lions in 2003 and earned a 10160-1 record over nine seasons, including three trips to the CFL championship and two Grey Cup wins, thanked his wife Sande and his family. He also credited the game's journeymen and stars. "I have often said that coaches don't win games, it's the players that win games. With that in mind, I am forever indebted to some of our league's greatest talents for their effort and dedication to our great game," he said in a prepared statement.
Stepping up as head coach is Mike Benevides, the Lions defensive co-ordinator for the past four seasons who first worked with Buono as an unpaid assistant more than a decade ago in Calgary.
Like their football brethren at B.C. Place Stadium, the Vancouver Whitecaps have made a few changes, to say the least. Paul Barber, who came to the club from the English Premier League two years ago, announced his resignation last Friday. "I am delighted and honoured to have served one of North America's oldest and most famous soccer clubs and to have played a part in re-establishing the Whitecaps at the highest level of the game on this continent," he said. The club, which had one of the poorest records in the league but was near the top in terms of attendance and season ticket sales, will not fill the role of CEO, but chief operating officer and Vancouverite Rachel Lewis will assume most of Barber's business responsibilities. Bobby Lenarduzzi, also a lifelong Vancouverite, will become an even greater public ambassador for the club.
