CALGARY, AB -- Canadian Hockey has created four new directors as part of a staff restructuring that will see Scott Smith, formerly manager of the Atlantic Centre of Excellence, move to the sport federation's Calgary headquarters to assume new duties as the CHA's Director, Operations.

In that role, Smith will handle a broad area of responsibilities across Canadian Hockey's operations, including day-to-day management of the CHA's offices in Calgary and Ottawa and the four Centres of Excellence in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Saint John, NB. Smith is expected to move to Calgary in September.

The three other Calgary-based directors are: Jamie McDonald, Director, Development, Yvonne Bergmann, Director, Marketing Services/Events and Denis Hainault, Director of High Performance Programs. The new appointments became effective as of , the start of the new CHA fiscal year.

The four directors will report to Bob Nicholson, Canadian Hockey's senior vice-president, who moved to Canadian Hockey's Calgary office at the Father David Bauer Arena last year. The new senior management team is rounded out by Paul Delparte, vice-president, finance and Canadian Hockey President Murray Costello, who will continue to work out of the CHA's offices in Ottawa.

McDonald will continue to fulfill the duties involved with his previous role as Manager, Coaching until after the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. At that time, Ray Bennett, assistant coach to Shannon Miller with the National Women's Team, will move into the role of Manager, Coaching.

In Atlantic Canada, Smith will be ably replaced at the Atlantic Centre of Excellence by Pat McLaughlin, his working partner at the Centre since it opened two years ago.

The restructuring follows the departure from Canadian Hockey of Ron Robison, who resigned his position as senior vice-president, Business Operations at the end of June. Robison, who has formed his own sports marketing company, will continue to work for Canadian Hockey on a contract basis.

Robison, who brought the Royal Bank into the Canadian Hockey family as premier sponsors along with Imperial Oil and Air Canada, will continue in his role as Canadian Hockey's point man with corporate Canada as the association moves into the next century.