Basketball Australia is pleased to announce that the Opals and Helloworld Travel Boomers will be supported with the appointment of a Head of Delegation (HOD) for each team.
The primary role of the HOD will be to ensure the activities of the teams enable the best process to be applied for the teams to be successful in the new FIBA qualifying systems for World Cup events and the Olympic Games.
The HOD has the responsibility to lead the teams staff and to engage and strengthen relationships with other National Federations while on tour, requiring a diverse and unique skill set.
Trish Fallon, a three-time Olympic Medallist (1996, 2000, and 2004) and captain of the team in Athens will take up the Opals role.
She also enjoyed an outstanding professional career playing in Spain and the WNBA.
“I am extremely excited and honoured to take on the Head of Delegation role with the Opals Team and I just cannot wait to start working alongside the players, Head Coach Sandy Brondello and all the Opals staff,” said Fallon.
“As a player, the Opals were such a big part of my life and those experiences put me in good stead for this position.
“Working in basketball administration for the past ten years has also given me a wealth of experience working with elite teams, gaining further knowledge on the needs of players and the day-to-day operations of an elite team.
“I would personally like to thank Graeme Allen and the Dandenong Basketball Association for their support and allowing me to take up this new role whilst continuing with my current job at Dandenong. An opportunity like this simply would not be possible without their support.”
“Trish remains one of the most respected and admired Opals of all time and has continued to contribute to the game through her administration and leadership role with the Dandenong Rangers,” said Basketball Australia CEO, Anthony Moore.
“Basketball Australia is also appreciative of the support and encouragement towards Trish into this new role from Dandenong Basketball Association CEO, Graeme Allen.”
For the Helloworld Travel Boomers, Jason Membrey has embraced the HOD role and comes from AFL Gippsland where he was the Senior Operations Coordinator.
Jason’s pathway has seen him involved in two FIBA Under-17 World Championship campaigns for Australia while he also spent seven years as a Coordinator of Events and International relations with Latrobe City Council.
“I am truly humbled with this appointment,” Membrey said.
“The past four years with the Under-17 men’s program has been extremely rewarding and I’m now looking forward to transitioning into a new role and complementing the Helloworld Travel Boomers as they enter a new and exciting era.”
“Jason’s collective experiences will be well utilised as the Helloworld Travel Boomers embrace a new qualifying system that will enable them to play on home soil more often,” said Moore.
“The complexities of the role which our HOD’s will be exposed to requires them to have exceptional interpersonal skills and a high level of astuteness operating in a dynamic environment,” said Basketball Australia General Manager of High Performance, Jan Stirling.
“Both Trish and Jason deliver these attributes readily and they will coordinate support across a range of areas to ensure athletes, coaches and staff can achieve the best preparation possible for international success.”
The Opals will hold their first camp under the stewardship of new head coach Sandy Brondello in Phoenix from June 25-July 3 while head coach Andrej Lemanis has called his selection camp for the Helloworld Travel Boomers ahead of the FIBA Asia Cup from July 19-25 on the Gold Coast.
Media Contact:
Jan Stirling
Basketball Australia
General Manager of High Performance
0409 700 991
jan.stirling@basketball.net.au
In the spirit of reconciliation Basketball Australia acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.