Mark Benesh, Principal of Shaunavon High School, was elected President of Basketball Saskatchewan Inc. at the provincial sports organizations recent Annual General Meeting.
Benesh replaces Joe Ralko who retired after serving three consecutive, two-year terms as BSI President. Ralko will remain active within the Saskatchewan basketball community as the chair of the bid committee attempting to host a FIBA Americas tournament in 2011.
Benesh, a guard, played his minor basketball with what was then called the Regina Church Basketball Association (RCBA) and at Dr. Martin LeBoldus High School, where he won a provincial championship in 1980 before moving to the University of Regina Cougars. He was an all-star Guard and Cougar MVP in 1985. He has been a teacher and basketball coach in Shaunavon, about 350 kilometers southwest of Regina, since 1993.
He has coached the Shaunavon Boys and Shaunavon girls teams to many Hoopla appearances. He has coached in the BSI program since 1984, as well as coaching in the U13 & 14 provincial championships the past two summers.
Benesh had served as vice-president of coaching development for BSI the past two years. Benesh hopes to continue increasing the profile of Basketball in Saskatchewan, by developing coaches, increasing the number of kids playing basketball, while at the same time developing players for our elite teams.
John Frison of Eatonia will continue as Vice-President of Athlete Development while Bryan Akre of Outlook will continue as Vice-President of Officials Development on the new board of the directors.
Tim Artemenko replaces Benesh as Vice-President of Coaching Development and Brent Hebert is the new Vice-President of Finance and Administration. Artemenko, a Level 4 NCCP coach, is a Master Learning Facilitator for Canada Basketball’s new coaching curriculum. Hebert, the immediate past president of RCBA, is an accountant with the provincial government’s finance department.
Artemenko, Hebert and Shannon Chinn, the Manager of Corporate Sponsorships and Game Day operations for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League since 2006, are serving their first terms on the BSI board. They are all from Regina.
Bert Brander of Meadow Lake and Brian Charmney of Melville were reelected to the board.
Board members whose terms continue until next year include Greg Jockims, Wendy Benson, Harold Shutiak and Rick Wingate, all of Saskatoon, Penny Anderson of Melfort and Michael Champion of Regina.
