PERTH 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships

He competed in five of the latter, including being Project Manager and a member of the crew of Australia II when she won the Cup in 1983.

After his Cup involvement, John led the team that constructed the replica of Captain James Cook’s ship of discovery, the HMB Endeavour.

He was also Chief Executive Officer of the Fremantle Chamber of Commerce before taking up his new role as Event Director of the Perth 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships.

In 1984, John was made a member of the Order of Australia (AM) for his services to yachting and in 1994 was recognised as Fremantle Citizen of the Year. He was also awarded the Australian Sports Medal in 2000 and the Centenary Medal in 2003.

In 2009, he was inducted into the America’s Cup Hall of Fame and is the seventh Australian to be so honoured.

Darren comes to Perth 2011 from Australian Rules football, where he worked for many years in both the football operations and commercial aspects of the game. Darren worked with the West Australia Football Commission from 1994 - 1998 and was then recruited by the AFL to be the General Manager of the Tasmanian Football Development Foundation, where he also served as Acting Chief Executive Officer.

Darren spent three years working with Funge Systems in the USA where he was Vice President of Operations of the e-commerce company, based in Virginia in the United States.

Upon his return to WA, Darren was appointed General Manager, Business Development with the West Australian Cricket Association (WACA), where he was responsible for all Commercial Operations of the Association before moving to The Brand Agency.

In February 2005, Darren was appointed General Manager - Strategic Partnerships for the Fremantle Football Club where he was responsible for sponsorship acquisition and management and the development of club strategic partnerships nationally and overseas.

He holds four degrees, including an MBA.

Darren is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and sits on the Boards of Celebrate WA, the Asthma Foundation of Australia, Venues West and is the President of the Asthma Foundation (WA).

At Perth 2011, he is responsible for all commercial aspects of the Olympic qualifying Event, including marketing and membership, licensing and merchandise, media and communications, sponsorship sales and events and innovation.

Since a young age, Peter has been involved in building and developing businesses with a focus on sales and marketing. The core requirement was to bring to market new products and services, with an emphasis on the leisure wear market and licensed apparel.

A highlight of this experience was the relationship developed with the retail community and competing yachting syndicates during the America's Cup Defence, hosted by the City of Fremantle, in 1987.

In more recent years, Peter has been involved in the running of an Event/Seminar company, together with an Educational organisation, with an emphasis in the areas of personal development, success achievement, team development, and goal attainment.

The sport of sailing has been an integral part of Peter's life since he was a boy. He has competed at numerous State, National and World Championships.

He served on the committee at Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club and has held the position of President of the WA Dragon Association.

He brings with him nearly five years of experience as the Events Manager for Yachting WA.

An Event of this nature will require extensive local community support and Michael's knowledge of WA yacht clubs, their culture and membership will be invaluable.

As an active sailor, Michael will bring an important local sailing perspective to the Event, coupled with his experience at recent international events, both within sailing and other sports.

Michael has a Bachelor of Social Sciences (Sport Management), from Edith Cowan University, in Joondalup.

Samantha has spent the past 10 years working as an editor, sub-editor and journalist for several local and eastern states newspapers and magazines.

Further, she has worked in the media and public relations fields for a Federal politician, for a State Government Department and within Local Government.

She has a Bachelor of Social Sciences, double majoring in Public Relations and Politics, from Curtin University of Technology, in Bentley.

Samantha is also a qualified Austswim Teacher of Swimming and Water Safety.

Pic Lee has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Business Studies and has more than 20 years of experience as a Senior Secretary/Personal Assistant to General Managers and Directors in both not-for-profit and commercial organisations in the UK.

Her experience was gained working at the Commonwealth Secretariat, a five-star hotel, a head office of luxury brands and boutique hotels in London and with an architectural firm in Twickenham.

Since moving to Perth, Pic Lee has worked alongside John Longley as Executive Assistant at the Fremantle Chamber of Commerce. The time spent at the Chamber has contributed to her excellent knowledge of Fremantle and the business community. This valuable knowledge has provided a smooth transition into her current role as Executive Assistant to the Perth 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships.

He has taken on a range of roles with major sporting events in eight different countries, including the Indian Premier League 2007 and 2008, HBSC Men’s and Women’s Champions and numerous other European Tour and LPGA golf events. He is an active sportsman and is well travelled. His international travel complements his excellent international sports events experience and his skills and ideas will prove invaluable to the Sailing World Championships.

Having graduated with a BA Marketing Degree from Dublin Institute of Technology in Ireland, Julie has gained extensive exposure working within a number of target driven environments both nationally and internationally. Initially Julie worked in the corporate sailing industry in the United Kingdom, at the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy UK as a Marketing Assistant, where her responsibilities included marketing, communications, public relations and event management. Her background also includes invaluable business skills gained in the recruitment industry, and she’s a sailor!

Jane has for the past fifteen years worked internationally, nationally and domestically in the Events Industry. She has primarily been involved in the area of Business Development and Sponsor Management though has also worked more recently in Venue Operations. Some of the events Jane has worked at include the FIFA World Cup Beach Volleyball Championships in South Africa, Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, Manchester and Melbourne 2002 and 2006 Commonwealth Games, APEC and numerous other World Class Events. Jane also has extensive experience working for companies who have invested in a major international event and most recently worked for BHP Billiton based in Western Australia managing their investment at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

Jane completed a BA Science Degree at Curtin University in Health Promotion and competed for Western Australia in both Track and Road Cycling and Indoor Beach Volleyball.