End of an era.

Having steered Belfast Giants Ltd back on track over the last 3 years, General Manager John Elliott today announced the Club was appointing a new Commercial Manager and General Manager designate. From the 1st November 2006, the last remaining original Giant Todd Kelman will work in close partnership with GM John Elliott, taking on the full time General Manager role next May.

John Elliott was quick to reassure fans, “Todd Kelman will continue to star on the ice for the duration of the 2006-2007 season, (which will be his last season as a player), whilst he progressively takes on his new managerial responsibilities. Todd has played over 350 games for the Coors Giants since the opening match in Sweden in September 2000 and has also built a media profile with his columns in local papers and the Club match night programme, Top Shelf. However, during his time here in Northern Ireland, he has also been developing his business credentials with great success as Sales Manager for local printing firm XPress Printing. Todd is a proven communicator in business circles and will quickly step into working with sponsors, the League, venue operators, the media, travel firms and public sector bodies. The Club has always been an active participant in the community, particularly through schools and Todd has motivated many of our youth to live a healthy lifestyle. The Coors Giants profile and continued growth of audience numbers will be in safe hands with Todd.”

Accepting the promotion, Todd Kelman said, “Let there be no mistake, not all sports athletes know the very different rules and challenges involved in the business of running a Club. It’s a very different “game” but I’m confident I know the key players in the commercial arena and I couldn’t have a better General Manager to shadow, than John. Despite having swept the Northern Ireland public off its feet back in 2000, the Club and the original Ice Hockey SuperLeague suffered from weak financial management. John has been very effective at turning things around. He implemented strict cost management, cemented sponsorship deals, secured audience figures, recruited 2 fantastic Coaches and whilst it’s the team on the ice who lifted the Elite League trophy last season, no team can be successful without strong, business management. He concentrated on the business priorities and although I have some ideas for the future including introducing a new merchandise range, I will very much be concentrating on the commercial priorities.”

John Elliott added “Taking on the role of General Manager of such a high profile company after the demise of the old SuperLeague was considered quite a risk. I am proud of the progress we’ve made since then but I have other business interests I must return to focusing on, and I am looking forward to transitioning the management of the club to Todd over the coming months.”

Speaking on behalf of the shareholders of the Coors Giants, Chairman Albert Maasland said “John Elliott has done an excellent job of managing the club. He has built a stable financial base by developing strong relations with our sponsors, and under his stewardship we are particularly pleased to see the steady growth of our season ticket fan base. Having rebuilt the club into its present shape which culminated in the Elite League Championship success last season, John indicated to us that the demands of the role were having an impact on the time and commitment that he was able to give to his other business interests. We are particularly pleased to have reached agreement with Todd to take on the Commercial Manager role for the balance of this season leading up to Todd taking on the full time General Manager position from John in May next year. We wish both John and Todd the very best as they take the Coors Giants to new heights.”

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