AVP Commissioner Leonard Armato Resigns In Management Shift

Armato Leaving AVP Tour After Eight Years

AVP Chair, CEO & Commissioner Leonard Armato has resigned from his positions, and will become a special advisor to the Tour. Current AVP COO Jason Hodell will replace Armato as CEO, while N.Y.-based marketing agency Mr. Youth co-Founder & CEO Paul Tedeschi has been hired as CMO. Meanwhile, AVP Tour investor RJSM Partners has committed additional financing for the Tour, which added Red Sox Exec VP and Chief Sales & Marketing Officer Sam Kennedy and Bombo Sports & Entertainment CEO Bob Potter to its BOD (AVP). Hodell said of Armato's resignation, "Everybody was taken aback when they heard the news. Everybody around the sport recognizes the impact he's had. He was one of the guys who helped bring the tour back to life. As a volleyball player, I feel like I owe him a debt of gratitude." In L.A., Mark Medina notes Armato joined the AVP Tour as CEO in '01, and during that time has "tried to capitalize on the popularity of beach volleyball and the success" of U.S. teams at the last two Summer Olympics. However, the Tour has been "mired in financial difficulties and has not turned a profit" since '98. Hodell acknowledged that "'profits have been a challenge' despite several tour sponsorship renewals." The AVP lost $3M in the first nine months of '08, $4M in '07 and "recently delisted its stock" (L.A. TIMES, 4/9).

IMPACTING OLYMPIC QUALIFYING: UNIVERSAL SPORTS' Alan Abrahamson noted the AVP leadership restructuring "could play a role in the process by which the U.S. beach volleyball teams are selected" for the '12 London Olympics. Int'l Volleyball Federation officials recently announced new qualifying rules for the '12 Games, and it "remains unclear how, if at all, the AVP transition will play into that" (UNIVERSALSPORTS.com, 4/8).