Tom Renney is a hockey man, not a businessman. Jake Allen Jersey . He once ran a clothing store in Trail, B.C., along with his wife but since then his life has been immersed in coaching. So when Hockey Canada was searching for a new president and CEO and Renney emerged as serious candidate, the 59-year-old didnt put on a masquerade. "(Business is) not where his passion lies," Team Canada coach Mike Babcock said. "And its not where his expertise lies. One thing about Tom: He knows what he is and he knows what hes not." Renney above all else is a respected hockey man, and his decades of experience at the amateur, international and professional levels ultimately made him Hockey Canadas choice to replace Bob Nicholson. What separated Renney from other candidates, board of directors chairman Jim Hornell said, was his values base, connections throughout the sport and passion to grow the game. "Hes a people person, he connects well, he communicates well with people and certainly hes recognized not only in Canada but throughout the hockey world, and thats important," Hornell said on a conference call Tuesday. "Its important that we have someone who is knowledgeable in hockey but who is also recognized in hockey and can bring a team together." Around the NHL, where Renney has worked in various coaching and player personnel jobs for the Vancouver Canucks, New York Rangers, Edmonton Oilers and Detroit Red Wings, the Cranbook, B.C., native is lauded for his ability to bridge gaps and build a consensus. "Hes as well-connected as anybody in hockey, for starters, which really helps," Rangers general manager Glen Sather said in a phone interview. "I dont think theres anyone in the hockey business who would have a bad thing to say about Tom." Renney most recently worked as an associate coach on Babcocks staff in Detroit. Red Wings GM Ken Holland said that hire was a "no-brainer" and felt the same about his hiring by Hockey Canada because of his wealth of experience. Babcock, who has led Team Canada to back-to-back Olympic gold medals, said Hockey Canada "absolutely hit it out of the park" by hiring Renney. "Tom Renney treats people right, a hundred per cent integrity. When hes wrong, he owns his own garbage," Babcock said in a phone interview. "I was happy for Canadian hockey, because to me they got themselves a real good man whos been through all the steps, can speak to people and knows whats important in the game. Hes going to help grow our game again, and I think thats so important." The Hockey Canada that Renney inherits in 2014 is one that Hornell emphasized is "on a very solid foundation" thanks to work done since 1998 by Nicholson, who resigned in April. Among Renneys new challenges is to make hockey a more affordable sport for Canadian children and to maintain interest in it beyond the youth level. "I want to pay particular attention to development, I want to pay particular attention to grassroots hockey," Renney said at a news conference in Calgary. "I want people to participate in the game for the right reasons, and that means doing the right thing. Little people have to want to play this game, older people have to want to continue to play it, and when you get to that great old age of whatever it is, you want to play it as a lifetime sport." Hockey has been a lifetime endeavour for Renney, who began coaching in the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League before moving on to win two WHL titles and a Memorial Cup with the Kamloops Blazers in the early 1990s. He was the coach of Canadas national team for two years after that, including at the 1994 Olympics. Renneys NHL experience included being head coach of the Canucks, Rangers and Oilers. While with New York, he also served as director of player personnel and vice-president of player development. If there was any doubt Renney was just a coach, he quashed it. "Hes one of the most analytical guys that I know and well-organized, persistent," Sather said. "Ive always looked to hire somebody thats smarter than me. He was one of those guys that I was quite sure that he was." In the decade since, Renney went from associate coach of the Oilers to head coach to an associate for the past two seasons with the Red Wings. Even though he never led a team beyond the conference final, his strengths kept him as a hot commodity in the game. "Hes coached our Olympic team, he started in grassroots hockey, he played college hockey," Babcock said. "Hes just flat-out done it all, and he doesnt get tired. All he thinks about is hockey. Hes 24/7 hockey, thats what he loves." On the international stage, Renney was vice-president of hockey operations for Hockey Canada from 1997 to 1999 and on three occasions was on the coaching staff at world championships. Holland recalled presentations Renney made to international coaches, too, as even more evidence of experience and his stature within hockey circles. "Hes going to respect people, hes going to respect the game and in return he gets that respect back," Holland said in a phone interview. "He knows everybody in the game, and if he doesnt know them, as soon as he introduces himself because of what hes accomplished and because of his experiences, because hes a classy, first-class person, hes very comfortable in talking to people." Renney is not arrogant but confident about his business background, even if its restricted to a clothing shop in Trail with his wife, Glenda, where he dealt with the ebb and flow of pricing and learned how to balance budgets and maintain relationships with customers. "There isnt a lot that can get done in this day and age without a good business plan, so I very much have my head around that," Renney said. "I know that I come into a situation that has enormous capital in terms of its people potential here and the work thats been done in the past. Im thankful for that quite honestly because as you can appreciate as more of an operations/coach background, this is really important to me to be surrounded by terrific people, which I am, to help push forward our business plan, if you will, and enhance it." Renney, who will get help from chief operation officer Scott Smith, isnt as business savvy as Nicholson, who last month became vice-chairman of Oilers Entertainment Group. Through an Oilers spokesman, Nicholson deferred comment until later in the week so as not to interfere with Renneys big day. The expectations on Renney are much different. "Weve done great work in the past and Toms job is to take us into a new era," Hornell said. "His passion for the game came through through the entire process and were just looking for him now to hit the ground running and will take Hockey Canada to the next level." Paul Stastny Jersey . The Italian football federation announced the appointment, three days after new president Carlo Tavecchio was elected. Tavecchio and Conte spoke on the phone early Thursday. Shayne Corson Jersey . - Pete Rose didnt want it to be about him, not on a day when four new members were elected to baseballs most exclusive club.LAUSANNE, Switzerland -- Serbian tennis player Viktor Troicki had his doping ban reduced from 18 months to a year on Tuesday, although he still cannot play in next weeks Davis Cup final. The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling "puts an end to my dreams of being a top player," the 27-year-old Troicki said in a statement. "I worked my entire life for it, and it has been taken away from me in one afternoon by a doctor I didnt know," said Troicki, whose ranking peaked at No. 12 in June 2011. It fell from No. 53 to 77 since he was suspended by an International Tennis Federation tribunal in July. Troickis appeal to CAS was partially upheld, and it ordered him to serve a 12-month ban for skipping a blood test after losing at the Monte Carlo Masters in April. He blamed a tournament anti-doping officer who he claimed advised him to write to the ITF explaining that he was ill and could not give a blood sample. He had already given a urine sample which later tested negative. "The player committed a doping offence, but his fault was not significant," the court said in a statement. Troicki will be cleared to play again on July 15, having missed four Grand Slam events while suspended. "I have no idea about what to do now or where to go. I hope somehow I will be able to fight back," he said. Serbia plays the Czech Republic in the Davis Cup final in Belgrade next week. Troicki appeared in the first two rounds this year. CAS fast-tracked Troickis case to give him the chance of reselection if his appeal had been successful. Troickis Davis Cup teammate and good friend Novak Djokovic lashed out at the World Anti-Doping Agency, saying the decision in Troickis case proved that the fight against doping is badly organized and he does not trust the system anymore. "When you are randomly selected to go and provide the test, blood test or urine test, the representatives of WADA ... who are there in the tournament, are supposed to give you the clear indications and explain you the rules and regulations, and what the severe consequences or penalties that you might undertake or you might have if you fail to provide the test," he said. "The representative, she didnt do that in his case." In 2010, Troicki won the decisive singles rubber in the final against France to give Serbia its first title. Djokovic also criticized the ATP for not standing behind Troicki. Jaden Schwartz Jersey. "So Viktor is there by himself. Tomorrow can be anybody else," Djokovic said. "For me this is just another big reason, another example that there are some certain things that have to be changed definitely." Troickis home federation described the verdict as "humiliating and disappointing." "Serbias Tennis Association is deeply disappointed with such a decision," it said in a statement. "Viktor Troicki has been inflicted a major injustice." ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti said rules had to be applied strictly "to keep our sport clean." "What is harder to accept is criticism of doping control officers who perform a difficult role," Ricci Bitti said in a statement. World No. 1 Rafael Nadal also expressed support for Troicki, who he called "a good guy." "I hope to see him back on tour next year," Nadal said at the ATP World Tour Finals in London. "The doctor who accepted to make the control the next day, if thats that way, thats a big mistake from the doctor, too." The CAS panel acknowledged that the tournament anti-doping officer "should have informed the player in clearer terms of the risks caused by his refusal to undergo a blood test." The court added "there was no suggestion that Mr. Troicki intended to evade the detection of a banned substance in his system." The three-member CAS panel said that Troicki and the doping official, a Ukrainian doctor, gave their evidence in good faith in Lausanne one month ago. However, the panels ruling published by the ITF noted that "the recollection of the athlete in particular was colored by his subsequent reconstruction of events." A one-year ban was considered a "just and appropriate sanction" by the panel, and the minimum required in such a case according to ITF anti-doping rules. The ITF tribunal in July declined to impose the standard two-year ban for a first anti-doping violation because it accepted Troicki was stressed by illness on the day and his long-standing needle phobia. The ITF said Troicki remains disqualified from the Monte Carlo Masters, but retains his prize money and ranking points from subsequent events, including his run to a fourth-round loss against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga at the French Open. Cheap NFL JerseysCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaCheap Jerseys From ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys AuthenticWholesale Jerseys ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaNFL Cheap Jerseys ' ' '