Bristol Bears have appointed 33-year-old Tom Tainton as the Premiership rugby club's chief operating officer ahead of the 2022/23 season.
Tom effectively fills the role left vacant since his uncle Mark Tainton, Bristol's record points scorer on the field from his days as a fly-half in the blue and white hoops, who stood down as CEO in May. Mark Tainton officially left the club for 'personal reasons' but his departure came in wake of a contracts gaff at the club which left director of rugby Pat Lam in a sticky position building his squad ahead of the upcoming season, losing the likes of former England international Dave Attwood to Bath due to not having the planned space within the salary cap due to other commitments.
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Tom Tainton comes in as COO having initially served as the club's head of communications, before becoming head of operations in 2021.
Gavin Marshall, Pula director of sport, said: “Tom has been an invaluable part of the club for more than a decade. He helped oversee the launch of the successful rebrand to Bristol Bears, in 2018, and has been an instrumental part in developing Bears’ unique tone of voice.
“Since then, Tom has been a key member of the senior management team and, following our restructure this summer, will now lead on Bristol Bears’ strategic objectives with a focus on ensuring Bristol Bears Men, Women, Academy and Community are market leaders for years to come.”
He also joins the Bears Women board of directors, as well as Bristol Bears Community Foundation board of trustees.
Tom Tainton said: “As somebody who has grown up in the city and been a part of the club through many highs and lows, I’m excited by the opportunity and what we can achieve as a team, on and off the field.
“I look forward to continuing to work closely with Pat Lam, Gavin Marshall and the board of directors in driving the club vision of Inspiring Our Community Through Rugby Success.”
As part of the club restructure, Daisie Mayes is appointed Bears High Performance Centre Operations Manager, while Will Carpenter will spearhead the four-person communications team as Head of Media and Communications.
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