USask announces next chief athletics officer to lead Huskie Athletics
The University of Saskatchewan (USask) and Huskie Athletics are pleased to announce Shannon Chinn as the incoming chief athletics officer beginning June 15, 2021.
“It is an incredible honour to come home and join such a historic and successful athletics program,” said Chinn, who earned a bachelor’s degree in human kinetics from the University of Ottawa, where she played varsity basketball and also completed a post-graduate program in sports business management. “I believe we have the ability to inspire greatness, create unforgettable moments and connect with people through unparalleled student-athlete experiences.”
“Born and raised in Saskatchewan with strong connections to the province, Shannon’s skills and experience—especially related to the senior leadership roles she has held with a number of professional and amateur Canadian sport organizations—will help guide Huskie Athletics to being the premier university program in Canada,” said Chad London, dean of USask’s College of Kinesiology and vice-chair of the Huskie Board of Trustees. “After an extensive search, Shannon was the ideal choice for this critical leadership role in Huskie Athletics.”
Most recently the director of Look Sport, Shannon has worked on multiple NHL outdoor games, the Canada Games, Pegasus World Cup, Mosaic Stadium and Tim Hortons Field. She brings extensive experience in university athletics, partnership development, brand management and game day production for elite organizations including the Saskatchewan Roughriders, the Ottawa Senators, Carleton University and TSN (The Sports Network). She is an elected Football Canada board member, on the business development committee, the female development committee and co-chair of the diversity task force.
“In collaboration with the exceptionally talented coaches and staff, I am confident that my experiences in sports management at the varsity and professional level will bring Huskie Athletics and the University of Saskatchewan great success. As well, as a former student-athlete I look forward to contributing to the development of our student-athletes who are such amazing ambassadors for the program in our community,” said Chinn, who replaces Dave Hardy who stepped into this role on an interim basis for a term of up to two years in August 2019. “I can’t wait to get started and to work with our student athletes, coaches, staff, partners and donors.”
“I am appreciative of all of the previous leaders, coaches and athletes who have laid the strong and successful foundation here,” she said. “I look forward to building on their hard work to improve the student-athlete experience, amplify the high-performance culture, and raise the pride and profile through student and community engagement to take Huskie Athletics to the next level.”