New DGA General Manager

It is with great pleasure that the DGA Committee announces the appointment of Rod Bannister to our Club's General Manager position.

Rod comes to us with an excellent background in grassroots and high performance sport, facility operations, management, fundraising, media, business and mental skills/mentoring. Rod has played and coached cricket and squash internationally. He returned to NZ in 2020 (amid covid disruptions) from a position as Operations Manager of Squash Australia's High Performance Centre on the Gold Coast.

He had many relevant roles there including: sole responsibility for daily operations, managing competitions, recruiting and mentoring new staff, strategic planning, court upgrades, a head coaching role, bookings, creating cutting edge new programmes adapting to lockdown, and preparing for a world championship event. Previously Rod was the General Manager for Media Works Whanganui, Regional Manager for Ricoh and is also the only person in NZ to hold a level 3 coach qualification from the World Squash Federation. Rod has a strong background in mentoring, coaching coaches and life coaching.

Rod will join us in Dunedin from his current home in Whanganui. Rod's Iwi is Kati Mamoe (South Westland) and we recognise that he moves closer to his Turangawaewae with this move South. As an aside, one of Rod's daughters enjoys participating in gymnastics (good choice we think ). Another is a national level swimmer and squash player. You will see Rod in Dunedin and around our gyms within the next month.

Rod is hugely looking forward to joining us and we are looking equally forward to welcoming him to Otago and DGA.