Bob Nicholson (sports executive)

Last updated March 15, 2019

Bob Nicholson (born 1955) is a sport executive who was president of the Toronto Argonauts and an executive of the Montreal Expos when they moved to Washington D.C. to become the Washington Nationals.

The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Based in Toronto, Ontario, the team was founded in 1873, and is the oldest existing professional sports team in North America still using its original name, and they are the oldest-surviving team in both the modern-day CFL and East Division. The team's origins date back to a modified version of rugby football that emerged in North America in the latter half of the nineteenth century. The Argonauts played their home games at Rogers Centre from 1989 until 2016 when the team moved to BMO Field, the fifth stadium site to host the team.

The Montreal Expos were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in the National League (NL) East Division from 1969 until 2004. Following the 2004 season, the franchise relocated to Washington, D.C., and became the Washington Nationals.

The Washington Nationals are a professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadium; since 2008 their home stadium has been Nationals Park on South Capitol Street in Southeast D.C., near the Anacostia River.

Biography

He grew up in Willowdale, Toronto and was educated at the University of Toronto. In 1974, he worked for Coopers & Lybrand Chartered Accountants and became a chartered accountant.^[1] From 1982 to 1994 he was a director at the Toronto Blue Jays.^[2]^[3]

Willowdale, Toronto Neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Willowdale is a neighbourhood in the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located in the district of North York. It developed from three postal villages: Newtonbrook, Willowdale and Lansing.

The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in the colony of Upper Canada. Originally controlled by the Church of England, the university assumed the present name in 1850 upon becoming a secular institution. As a collegiate university, it comprises eleven colleges, which differ in character and history, each with substantial autonomy on financial and institutional affairs. It has two satellite campuses in Scarborough and Mississauga.

The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. The team plays its home games at the Rogers Centre.

First stint at the Toronto Argonauts

In 1993, the Blue Jays bought the Toronto Argonauts, a year later, in December 1994, Nicholson then became the president of the Argonauts and remained at the post until 1999, when the team was bought by Sherwood Schwarz. During his time at the Argonauts they won consecutive Grey Cups in 1996 and 1997. He was succeeded as team president by Sherwood Schwarz who then appointed Michael 'Pinball' Clemons to the position in 2002.^[2]

Sherwood Schwarz is an American businessman and founder of Carnegie Associates Ltd and was the owner of the Toronto Argonauts from 1999 to 2003.

The Grey Cup is the name of both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. It is contested between the winners of the CFL's East and West Divisional playoffs and is one of Canadian television's largest annual sporting events. The Toronto Argonauts have the most Grey Cup wins (17) since its introduction in 1909, while the Edmonton Eskimos have the most Grey Cup wins (11) since the creation of the professional CFL in 1958. The latest, the 106th Grey Cup, took place in Edmonton, Alberta, on November 25, 2018, when the Calgary Stampeders defeated the Ottawa Redblacks 27–16.

Michael Lutrell "Pinball" Clemons is an American-Canadian sports executive who serves as vice-chairman for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Clemons played with the Argos for twelve seasons, and twice served as their head coach. His no. 31 jersey is one of only four that have been retired by the Argos. He is one of the most famous former Argos players, and is also one of the most popular professional athletes in the history of Toronto. Clemons has stated that he feels CFL football is the best football in the world. Clemons is 5 ft 6 in (167 cm) tall and weighs 170 pounds (77 kg).

After two years working for Neil Jamieson, the owner of the Toronto ThunderHawks, he became Chief financial officer of the Montreal Expos. He was in charge in 2004, when they moved from Montreal to Washington and were renamed the Washington Nationals to start the 2005 Major League Baseball season. It was first time a Major League Baseball team had relocated since 1972.^[3]

Toronto ThunderHawks were an indoor soccer team based in Mississauga, Ontario that competed in the defunct NPSL. The team began play in the 2000-2001 season, with home games at the Hershey Centre. The team was owned by businessman Neil Jamieson and National Hockey League Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman Paul Coffey. The owners also purchased the Montreal Impact of the NPSL and suspended the club, transferring many of the Impact players to the ThunderHawks.

The chief financial officer (CFO) is the officer of a company that has primary responsibility for managing the company's finances, including financial planning, management of financial risks, record-keeping, and financial reporting. In some sectors, the CFO is also responsible for analysis of data. Some CFOs have the title CFOO for chief financial and operating officer. In the United Kingdom, the typical term for a CFO is finance director (FD). The CFO typically reports to the chief executive officer (CEO) and the board of directors and may additionally have a seat on the board. The CFO supervises the finance unit and is the chief financial spokesperson for the organization. The CFO directly assists the chief operating officer (COO) on all strategic and tactical matters relating to budget management, cost–benefit analysis, forecasting needs, and securing of new funding.

The 2005 Major League Baseball season was notable for the league's new steroid policy in the wake of the BALCO scandal, which enforced harsher penalties than ever before for steroid use in Major League Baseball. Several players, including veteran Rafael Palmeiro, were suspended under the new policy. Besides steroids it was also notable that every team in the NL East division finished the season with at least 81 wins. Additionally it was the first season featuring a baseball team in Washington, D.C. after more than 4 decades, with the Washington Nationals having moved from Montreal.

Second stint at the Toronto Argonauts

In 2007, he left the Nationals and founded Wizard Sports Groups and was a member of the Canadian Olympic Committee. In May 2009, he returned as team president of the Toronto Argonauts. On 5 November 2003, Howard Sokolowski and David Cynamon bought the team with assistance from David Braley, so when Braley bought the team from Sokolowski and Cynamon on 9 February 2010, Nicholson remained as president.^[3]

The Canadian Olympic Committee - COC is the private, non-profit organization that represents Canada at the International Olympic Committee (IOC). It is also a member of the Pan American Sports Organization (PASO).

Howard Sokolowski, is a property developer, philanthropist and sport business owner from Toronto. He is the husband of Linda Frum and was the former co-owner of the Toronto Argonauts with David Cynamon from 2003 to 2010. His parents, Henry and Eva Sokolowski, were Holocaust survivors from Poland.

David Cynamon is a Canadian company executive and was the former co-owner of the Toronto Argonauts from 2003 to 2010 with Howard Sokolowski. David is a co-chair at Mount Sinai Hospital In Toronto.

In 2011, he resigned as president of the Argonauts and returned to Wizard Sports Group and was succeeded by Chris Rudge.^[2]

Chris Rudge is a Canadian business executive. He served as executive chairman and CEO for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League from 2012 to 2015. Following a business career in the printing industry, Rudge served as CEO of the Canadian Olympic Committee for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver and Whistler, British Columbia, and also chaired the successful Canadian program 'Own The Podium'.

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Rogers Centre, originally named SkyDome, is a multi-purpose stadium in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated just southwest of the CN Tower near the northern shore of Lake Ontario. Opened in 1989 on the former Railway Lands, it is home to the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). Previously, the stadium was home to the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL) played an annual game at the stadium as part of the Bills Toronto Series from 2008 to 2013. While it is primarily a sports venue, it also hosts other large events such as conventions, trade fairs, concerts, travelling carnivals, and monster truck shows.

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References

↑ November 1997 from CA Magazine retrieved 23 March 2014
1 2 3 Bob Nicholson resigns as Argos president, CEO Chris Rudge takes over Archived March 21, 2014, at Archive.is from National Post retrieved 21 March 2014
1 2 3 Bob Nicholson returns as president of the Argonauts from The Sports Network retrieved 21 March 2014

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[1] November 1997 from CA Magazine retrieved 23 March 2014

[post-2] 1 2 3 Bob Nicholson resigns as Argos president, CEO Chris Rudge takes over Archived March 21, 2014, at Archive.is from National Post retrieved 21 March 2014

[tsn-3] 1 2 3 Bob Nicholson returns as president of the Argonauts from The Sports Network retrieved 21 March 2014