Tennis Canada CEO Michael Downey awarded ACA Gold Medal

Downey obtained award on the Technique awards on October 3 in Toronto

Tennis Canada Chief Government Officer Michael Downey has been honoured with the 2023 Affiliation of Canadian Advertisers (ACA) Gold Medal for his excellent contribution to the development of selling communications in Canada. The award was introduced throughout The CMO Technique Discussion board on the Arcadian Courtroom in Toronto on Tuesday, October 3.

After 30 years’ expertise as a senior advertising and sponsorship chief, then as a chief government – together with 15 as Tennis Canada CEO cut up over two phrases – earlier this 12 months, Downey introduced he’ll retire on the finish of December 2023. In addition to Tennis Canada, his spectacular profession has seen him maintain management positions with the Toronto Raptors, Maple Leaf Sports activities & Leisure, Molson Canada and the Garden Tennis Affiliation in Britain.

Downey has been a driving power behind a number of of Canada’s most influential and recognizable advertising campaigns and occasions, from nostalgic Trident Gum commercials within the Eighties to modern promotional campaigns within the inaugural years of the Toronto Raptors, the award-winning Molson Canadian ‘I’m Canadian’ marketing campaign and the Molson Canadian Rocks for Toronto profit pageant – extra generally often called SARSFest – which attracted 450,000 to Downsview Park, the largest-ever live performance in Canada.

Downey ensured Tennis Canada utilized the worldwide success of Canadian tennis stars – like Milos Raonic in a tongue and cheek ‘Children’ Tennis Public Service Announcement’ ads and, extra not too long ago, Bianca Andreescu within the Women Set Match marketing campaign as a part of Tennis Canada’s gender fairness efforts with Nationwide Financial institution – to assist increase the profile of tennis in Canada. In receiving the award, Downey joins previous winners corresponding to Hugo Powell (1999), Dr. Alan C. Middleton (2012), Paul Lavoie (2015) and last-year’s recipient Mark Harrison, all of whom Downey has had the privilege of working with.

“It’s a honest honour to obtain this prestigious ACA award,” Downey commented. “To be in the identical firm as advertising icons and legends is an actual honour. In the long run, one’s success is all concerning the firm one retains, and I used to be privileged to have labored for and with a plethora of inspiring and exceptionally proficient individuals over the past 4 many years. The checklist is simply too lengthy to recite, however they know who they’re!

“I used to be additionally skilled proper of out of college in 1980 by the easiest product managers at Warner Lambert in Mary Hurst and Moira Bell,” he added. “These ‘lecturers’ of packaged-goods advertising made positive this ‘wet-behind-the-ears’ recruit was absolutely ready to finally deal with challenges and seize alternatives with nice Canadian manufacturers like Labatt Blue, the Toronto Raptors and Toronto Maple Leafs, the Molson household of manufacturers and, in fact, Tennis Canada and its world-renowned set of high tier tournaments, the Nationwide Financial institution Open (previously Rogers Cup) in Toronto and Montreal.”

“The impression of Michael’s profession in advertising and in  the development of Canadian tennis on the world stage are legacies that can endure the check of time,” stated Ron Lund, President & CEO of the Affiliation of Canadian Advertisers.

Throughout his tenure as Tennis Canada CEO, Downey has loved many highlights. Within the mid-2000s, he led the event of a daring plan to diversify and enhance income generated by the Nationwide Financial institution Open introduced by Rogers and main reward fundraising to reinvest in excessive efficiency and tennis improvement in Canada. He additionally spearheaded a brand new technique to kind Tennis Canada’s first ever Nationwide Tennis Centre (NTC) in Montreal and regional U14 applications in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. This breakthrough program, outfitted with world-class worldwide and Canadian coaches, has helped develop Canadian tennis superstars corresponding to Andreescu, Eugenie Bouchard, Raonic and Félix Auger-Aliassime.

Moreover, amid COVID-19, Downey led negotiations in securing ten and seven-year company partnership agreements with Nationwide Financial institution and Rogers respectively, which consolidated the way forward for Canadian tennis at a time of nice uncertainty.

Downey additionally gave again to his group in 2010 and 2011, when he served because the volunteer President of the Toronto Humane Society, main the troubled charity out of government-induced closure. 

Full particulars concerning the ACA Gold Medal Award are posted on the affiliation’s web site.