USA Swimming has hired GREG MEEHAN as its national team managing director. The former Stanford women’s coach served as the head coach of the Olympic team for the Tokyo Games as well as the assistant coach in 2016 (Rio) and 2024 (Paris). In the role, Meehan will be responsible for the national team program, including high performance, development of athletes and coaches and operations (Rachel Axon, SBJ).
Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur has appointed former Arsenal CEO VINAI VENKATESHAM to the same position. Venkatesham, who was Arsenal’s CEO for four years until leaving last summer, will fill the newly created role (London STANDARD, 4/11).
NASCAR promoted SVP/Global Strategy SCOTT PRIME to EVP & Chief Strategy Officer. Prime first joined NASCAR in 2015, and he helps NASCAR strategize on some of its most important initiatives domestically and internationally. A graduate of Harvard and Princeton, Prime is one of the few employees still based in NASCAR’s N.Y. office (Adam Stern, SBJ).
LIV Golf hired longtime sports communications exec LARA TOSCANI WEEMS as its new SVP/Media Relations, effective last week. Toscani Weems has been the SVP/Global Communications for Elevate for the last three years and before that was a longtime VP/Corporate Communications for Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment. The position is a newly created role with LIV, and Toscani Weems will be based in N.Y. (Josh Carpenter, SBJ). LIV also hired former Anheuser-Busch VP ALISSA HEINERSCHEID, who has been working at the league in a “Team Business Operations” role since September, according to her LinkedIn page (N.Y. POST, 4/13).
FloSports named Thrill One Sports & Entertainment SVP/Partnership MIKE LAHETA VP/Integrated Partnerships. Laheta previously worked at NASCAR and the NASCAR HOF for a decade (Adam Stern, SBJ).
Connect Partnership Group named LAUREN HART VP/Partner Solutions. Hart most recently served as the Head of Partnership Strategy at Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group. Before joining Cirque in October 2022, she spent nearly a decade at Topgolf Entertainment Group. Hart began her career at IMG Golf where she oversaw the agency’s relationship with Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters Tournament (Connect Partnership Group).
Santa Clara Univ. moved Assistant VP & Deputy AD/Development VINCE OTOUPAL to Senior Dir/Development for Athletics. Otoupal joined Santa Clara in the AVP role in 2022. Prior to that, Otoupal was Dir/Development for Major Gifts at Univ. of Utah. Otoupal’s career college athletics includes serving as AD at Utah Valley Univ. from 2013-19 and Cal State Monterey Bay from 2008-13 (Santa Clara Univ.).
The Univ. of Colorado promoted Deputy AD JASON DEPAEPE to Senior Deputy AD and Senior Associate AD/Compliance & SWA JILL KEEGAN to Deputy AD/Student Success & SWA. DePaepe joined Colorado in 2000 from the Ravens. Keegan came to Colorado in October 2010 from Michigan State, where she served as the assistant compliance coordinator for four years (Univ. Colorado).
The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra named former Penguins CMO JAMES SANTILLI SVP and Chief Revenue & Experience Officer (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 4/11).
The USL promoted Dir/Communications TYLER TETZLAFF to Senior Dir/Communications. Tetzlaff arrived at the USL in 2021 as a social media coordinator following a five-year tenue with USL Championship club Saint Louis FC (SBJ).
To have your personnel announcements included in “Executive Transactions,” please send information to careers@sportsbusinessjournal.com.
