Slowly but surely, Vancouver 2010 alumni are finding new gigs.
Dan Doyle, the VANOC construction executive vice-president, became the BC Hydro chairman last year. Deputy CEO Dave Cobb followed in May and
became the provincial power utility's CEO.
On June 29, vice-president of workforce operations and integration
Allen Vansen was named senior-vice president of operations for the
Toronto 2015 Pan American Games organizing committee.
Vansen was among five senior executives introduced at BMO Field by CEO Ian Troop.
Vansen was not available for a phone interview, but I’m betting the Newfoundlander’s red hair will turn grey rather quickly over the next five years. His responsibilities include security, transportation and the athletes’ village.
After the
G20 summit mayhem, anybody planning anything in Toronto with security or transportation implications will naturally have a bigger challenge and more headaches than ever before. Troop is putting the best face on what lies ahead.
“We don’t have any political meaning,” he said. “We’re a great athletic event that we’ll make into a great community event.”
VANOC CEO John Furlong wished that was true. From
Feb. 12, 2007 onward, VANOC looked over its shoulder as it was constantly dogged by protests. Some opponents had a direct beef with the Games, how much they were costing and how they were impacting the city and environment. Others hoped to use the Games to lever their political cause (or increase donations to their charity). It meant VANOC held few public events until the torch relay.
Furlong admitted in May that transportation was the biggest IOC worry from the bid days to the day after the Olympic flame was was extinguished.
The Olympic village in Vancouver’s Southeast False Creek became a casualty of the Great Recession.
Vancouver city hall became the lender and battled to get it back on schedule.
Vancouver had effective watchdogs, like
No Games 2010's Chris Shaw,
Impact on Community Coalition's Am Johal and
B.C. Civil Liberties Association's David Eby. They continuously reminded VANOC, governments and security authorities to be responsible and avoid a repeat of the 1997 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. Their wasn't an organized opposition to G20 in Toronto, because it
was organized so quickly by politicians and bureaucrats who maybe never heard of APEC.
That’s just a long way of saying that Troop (centre) and Vansen (second from left) are in for some long days and long nights to organize what will be the biggest summer sports event in Canadian history.
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Who else is on the Toronto 2015 executive team?
Chief financial officer Barbara Anderson has a bachelor of science degree from the University of B.C. and is the former CFO of
MaRS Discovery District and MaRS Innovation.
Senior vice-president of marketing and revenue Kathy Henderson is a former Whirlpool Corporation and Colgate-Palmolive Canada marketing executive. Senior vice-president of human resources Elaine Roper is formerly of Think Company, Promis Systems Corporation and Royal Trust Corp.
Senior vice-president of infrastructure Bill Senn helped build Air Canada Centre in Toronto and American Airlines Arena in Miami and was senior vice-president of design and construction for the New York Jets, who are moving into the
New Meadowlands Stadium.
