The former NSW Premier, Kristina Keneally, has announced her resignation from the NSW Parliament.
Keneally who served as Premier for the final 16 months of the Labor government’s 15-year term, will vacate the seat of Heffron, necessitating a by-election.
Keneally is to take up a position as CEO of Basketball Australia.
American-born, Keneally was elected to the NSW Legislative Assembly in 2003. She served as Disability Services minister and Planning Minister before being installed as Labor leader and Premier on December 3, 2009. She replaced Nathan Rees who had in turn replaced Morris Iemma.
Keneally led the NSW ALP to its biggest defeat ever. The party was reduced to 20 seats in the 93-member lower house.
Text of a statement from Basketball Australia.
Kristina Keneally named BA CEO
Former NSW Premier Kristina Keneally has been named CEO of Basketball Australia.
Basketball Australia today announced former New South Wales Premier Kristina Keneally will be appointed as the organisation’s new Chief Executive Officer, effective 3 August 2012.
Ms Keneally, the current Member for Heffron, is resigning from NSW Parliament in order to take up the position.
BA Board member Justin Milne will immediately assume the role of Chair of the BA Board until a new Chair is appointed.
Mr Milne – who chaired the CEO search committee – said the Board was very pleased by the quality of the candidates who put themselves forward for the job.
“The reality is the Board had an extremely competitive field of candidates to choose from, and applicants from within and outside sport,” Mr Milne said.
“However, the Board felt Kristina presented a complete package to BA: demonstrated leadership skills; strong understanding of community, government and the private sector; and excellent communication abilities.
“Her national profile, combined with her energy and her passion for the sport, will give basketball a significant boost in Australia.”
Acting CEO and BA Board member Scott Derwin said the move was yet another coup for Basketball Australia.
“Kristina has more than proven her worth to Basketball Australia during her short time as Chair; we’ve all been extremely impressed with how much she’s done to take the organisation in a new direction,” Mr Derwin said.
“There’s no better time to be involved in Australian Basketball. It’s an Olympic year, and all four of our international teams are ranked in the top 10 in the world.
“The sport has moved forward in leaps and bounds over recent years, and the Board looks forward to seeing Kristina build on that success in her new role as CEO.”
Ms Keneally said she looks forward to rolling up her sleeves and getting to work as CEO.
“I’ve loved working with Basketball Australia during my time as Chair – we’ve achieved a lot in a short space of time, including a new and improved NBL television deal with Network Ten, the establishment of the WNBL Commission, and return of the NBL All Stars game,” Ms Keneally said.
“Now, with the Olympics and Paralympics ahead of us, our teams are set to strut on the world stage.“Basketball in Australia has a solid success story to tell: we’re ranked as one of the top-five basketball playing nations in the world; our success at an international level is something other Australian codes can only dream about.
“Beyond this year’s Olympics, our vision is to capitalise on that success in a big way – to put Australian Basketball front and centre on our shores.”
Background Information
The Hon Kristina Keneally MP is the Member for Heffron in the New South Wales Parliament.
First elected in 2003, Kristina served as the 42nd Premier of New South Wales and the first female Premier in the state from 2009 to 2011.
She has also had the privilege of serving the people of New South Wales as a Minister in the portfolios of Planning, Infrastructure, Disability Services, Ageing, World Youth Day and Redfern Waterloo.
She holds a BA in Political Science (Hons) and a MA in Religious Studies, and has also worked as the NSW Youth Coordinator for the Society of St Vincent de Paul.
The daughter of an Australian mother and an American father, Kristina grew up in the United States, where she played varsity basketball at her high school. She moved permanently to Sydney in 1994, and married her husband Ben in 1996.
Kristina previously served as the Chairman of the Board of Basketball Australia. She is a Director of Souths Cares, the charitable arm of the South Sydney Rabbitohs Football Club, and an Advisory Board member of the Sydney Sixers T20 cricket team.
She is also an Ambassador for Opportunity International Australia and a member of the Advisory Board of Government Media, publishers of Government Magazine.
Kristina is the mother of 3 children: Daniel (aged 14), Brendan (aged 11), and Caroline, who was stillborn. Kristina serves as Patron of the Stillbirth Foundation, promoting awareness, understanding, support and research into stillbirth.
