Re-imagining Asia's sports and entertainment destinations #SAS24

Nicholas is a Registered Architect in Singapore with over a decade of experience working on diverse projects in the Sports, Aviation, Convention Centre and Hospitality sectors.

Nicholas currently leads the team in working closely in collaboration with Architect partners on Toa Payoh Integrated Development (TPID), a mixed-use integrated sports facility, consisting of a football stadium, sports halls, and an aquatic centre for both community and athlete use.

At Populous, Nicholas is able to combine his love of sports and passion for designing experiences together to explore ways in creating large scale venues that are diverse, inclusive, and which people love to gather.

Saitama Super Arena (さいたまスーパーアリーナ, Saitama Sūpā Arīna) is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Chūō-ku, Saitama, Saitama Prefecture, Japan. It was officially opened on 1 September 2000. Its maximum capacity is 36,500 – making it the third-largest indoor arena in the world at the time. The main arena capacity is between 19,000 and 22,500.

The arena features a gigantic movable section of seating which can reduce capacity for smaller events and create a more intimate setting.

It is a renowned venue for puroresu (Japanese professional wrestling) and mixed martial arts (MMA). It has also hosted other sports events such as boxing, basketball, volleyball, tennis, ice hockey, and gymnastics. It is the only Japanese arena equipped specifically for American Football.

The Sam Kerr Football Centre is a World-Class high-performance football facility located 15 minutes from the Perth CBD, the 16-hectare site currently includes two full size elite hybrid pitches (soon to be four pitches), three 5-side pitches, state of the art strength and conditioning area, hydrotherapy treatment pools, café, bar and meeting/function room facilities. It is also the home of Football West’ administration offices.

As General Manager, Jeremy oversees the management and delivery of event and non-event day operations at the Sam Kerr Football Centre,  ensuring a high-quality customer and stakeholder experience whilst improving venue optimisation and maximising financial returns. A key aspect to the role is developing, and maintaining relationships with our partners, community groups, promoters, sporting bodies, venue hires and event service providers to ensure Football West and the Sam Kerr Football Centre can deliver a world class sporting and or hospitality experience for the user and player group. Jeremy also acts up as a Project Manger to oversee any venue improvements, amendments and ensures the facility is maintained and well presented at all times”.

Janice joined Populous in 2019, fulfilling her aspirations to work within a global firm specialising in innovative sports architecture and design. Prior to joining Populous, she gained over five years of design coordination experience in various retail, transport orientated development and mixed-use projects across China.

Based in Hong Kong, Janice is currently working on the world class entertainment facilities of Kai Tak Sports Park. As a UK Registered Architect, she has been the Design Lead for the Construction Phase of the South Precinct along with a member of the Design Development team for the 50,000 seat Main Stadium. The Main Stadium is an International standard facility with a retractable roof and a flexible and transformable pitch system capable in hosting wide range of international sports events like Rugby 7’s and concerts without being affected by different weather conditions.

Janice has personal interests in public infrastructure projects and master planning, Janice has found her passion for architecture, while also volunteering her time to renovate a community project in Hong Kong. She completed her Masters in Architecture at University College London – Bartlett School of Architecture, where she also gained her Bachelor of Architecture.

As a former Olympian (1984 Los Angeles) and Asian Games medalist, Jin Teik’s illustrious 32-years professional career spanned both private and public sectors in multiple industries, with residence in USA, China, and Singapore. He is a trusted, people-centric senior leader who specializes in business turnaround, mega project ideation-startup-operations, place making in mixed use developments, data- driven digital transformation, and complex stakeholder management (including public-private-people partnerships).

between 1999 and 2019, he led the conceptualisation, launch, operations, & management of Singapore Sports Hub – the world’s largest & most complex PPP (public private partnership) social infrastructure DBFO project across 35 hectares. A pioneer in the mixed use development for a sports entertainment lifestyle city with world class facilities (programming, event services, venue/facility management, retail operations, etc). By end Year 4 2018 & working with a complex network of stakeholders (B2G, B2B, B2C), we delivered 220 events & attracted 3 million attendees/users with a total of 15 million footfall.

Prior to his Sports Hub role, he spent six years as CEO of Sport Singapore where he implemented the national blueprint for Sporting Singapore across 3 thrusts, 6 targets, 40 strategies; thereby delivering national economic returns (GDP contribution) from S$300 million (2000) to S$1 billion (2008) and resulting in Singapore winning: 1) Gold for Sports City Award @International Sports Events Management Awards 2010; 2) Runners-Up for Ultimate Sports City Award @Sport Accord Convention 2010.

Today, Jin Teik operates his own consultancy business, namely in board advisory and strategic business management, after serving as CEO at American Ethane Capital, Singapore Sports Hub, Hyflux China, Singapore Sports Council, and other senior leadership roles in National Starch (Ingredion) and DuPont Company. Presently, he is Regional Managing Director for Ascention Consulting, Asia Pacific’s leading Clean Data experts in Data Management, Strategy, Culture, and Enablement.

Other roles include: Chairman & Non-Executive Director (Approved Technology Solutions, UK), Senior Advisor (Xctuality, ASICS Asia, eSports Players League, Singapore Rowing), and Board Member (Beyond Sport, Republic Polytechnic, Singapore Science Centre, Health Promotion Board).

Jin Teik has an MBA & BSc Chemical Engineering from Brigham Young University, USA. He attended Executive Education classes at Wharton Business School (University of Pennsylvania, USA), Kellogg Business School (Northwestern University, USA), 6th Leaders in Administration Program (Civil Service College, Public Service Division, Singapore), and Advanced Leaders Program-Future China (Business China, Nanyang Business School Singapore.)

Robbie is the Executive Manager, Charities (Sports) at the Hong Kong Jockey Club.

Prior to that he spent 21 years with Hong Kong China Rugby, and was CEO from May 2017 to July 2024.

He arrived in Hong Kong in 1992 and served 11 years in the Hong Kong Police Force, where he served in a number of roles including presenter of the “Police Report” TV show.

He has a MA (Oxon) and completed a PGC in Sports & Recreation Management at HKU Space in 2001.

He was a founding Director of local charity Operation Breakthrough and was instrumental in setting up the Rugby for Good Foundation, both of which use sport as a medium to tackle social issues.

He was awarded a MBE in 2019 for services to philanthropy and UK-Hong Kong relations, and a HKSAR Chief Executive’s Commendation for Community Service in 2024.

Mike Cerha joined the Mercedes-Benz Arena as General Manager in May 2024, overseeing all business operations of the Joint Venture, including events, corporate partnerships, marketing, and retail. This marks his second role leading a venue in China over the past 12 years.

Before his current position, Mike served as Vice President of Sport Venues for Events DC in Washington, D.C., where he managed a diverse portfolio, including the 190-acre RFK Stadium Campus and the St. Elizabeth East Campus, home to the Entertainment & Sports Arena.

Prior to his tenure at Events DC, he was Vice President of Venue & Entertainment at TD Place in Ottawa, Canada. In this role, he was responsible for day-to-day operations, scheduling, and the development of non-team events, while also managing relationships with partner organizations and coordinating operations with governmental agencies at TD Place and Lansdowne Park.

Earlier in his career, Mike was the General Manager of Zhongsheng Center in Dalian, China, an 18,000-seat NBA-caliber venue. He oversaw the construction and successful operation of the venue, including hosting 12 annual China National Games.

Mike spent over 11 years in various roles with the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies and FedExForum in Memphis, TN, where he contributed to the development and ongoing operations of FedExForum and provided oversight for Grizzlies operations at the interim venue, the Pyramid.

He has also worked at the Georgia Dome and Manatee Convention Center, participating in high-profile events such as the Super Bowl, NCAA Regionals, and SEC Football and Basketball Championships.

Mike holds a Master of Science in Sport Administration from Georgia State University and a Bachelor of Science in Recreation, Park, and Tourism Sciences from Texas A&M University, specializing in venue management and risk management. He is an active member of the International Association of Venue Managers and is a graduate of the association’s Venue Manager School and Senior Executive Symposium.

Darren is ASM Global’s Executive Director of Kai Tak Sports Park in Hong Kong. Expected to be completed in the second half of 2024, the 28  hectare precinct comprises a 50,000 seat stadium, 10,000 capacity arena, 5,000 seat public sports ground, 66,000 m2 of retail space, and public open spaces. Darren leads the team who will ultimately operate this US$3.8bn project.

Prior to his current role Darren was a consultant for the New South Wales Government, leading the business case for the redevelopment of Stadium Australia (now known as Accor Stadium) in Sydney and prior to that as an operations adviser for the development of Bankwest Stadium in Western Sydney.

Until July 2018 Darren spent nearly five years as Chief Executive of Vbase, manager of Christchurch’s leading venues including Horncastle Arena, AMI Stadium, Hagley Oval, Air Force Museum Wigram, and the Christchurch Town Hall.

Before moving to Vbase Darren spent seven years in Dunedin, firstly working as the Chief Executive of the trust established to masterplan and build Forsyth Barr Stadium in time for Rugby World Cup 2011.  Latterly he was the Chief Executive of Dunedin Venues, operator of the stadium as well as the Dunedin Centre and Town Hall.

From 2005 to 2020, Letian Hu held significant management roles across various sectors within Alibaba Group, including Alipay, Ant Financial, Alibaba Pictures, and Alibaba Entertainment.

In 2020, he led the Ali Entertainment team in forging cross-industry partnerships with Ali Sports, securing the exclusive rights to manage the stadium and tennis center at Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center.

In 2022, representing Ali Sports and in collaboration with Hangzhou Binjiang District Government and Intime Business, Letian Hu co-founded Hangzhou Binjiang Olympic Sports Operation Co., Ltd. Assuming the role of General Manager and legal representative, he initiated the 17-year venue operations.

During the Hangzhou Asian Games, Liam Hu guided his team in joining the operation of the Tennis Center at Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center, making significant contributions across various business domains to ensure the Games’ seamless execution.

Post-Asian Games, Letian Hu spearheaded efforts to attract commercial resources to the venues through market-oriented management, thereby enhancing the overall benefits derived from the Asian Games. His leadership significantly elevated the venues’ market-oriented operational standards, playing a crucial role in developing a robust sports business service ecosystem.

Sara has been with Zaha Hadid Architects for 21 years. She has been with Zaha Hadid Architects for 21 years and had key roles on several major ZHA cultural, civic and infrastructure scheme projects throughout Europe and internationally, including the MAXXI: Museum of XXI Century Arts in Rome, the London Aquatics Centre and the Lois & Richard Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art in Cincinnati.

Sara was a project architect for the London Aquatics Centre, a key venue for the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games. She is currently the design director of the Forest Green Rovers Eco Park Stadium in Stroud, UK. Embodying low-carbon construction methods and operational processes, the Eco Park Stadium will be the first all-wood football stadium, with almost every element made of sustainably sourced timber.

In educational developments, Sara was responsible for the development of the double-curved external cladding on the award-winning Investcorp Building for the University of Oxford, recognised for its architectural sensitivity and distinction.

Zaha Hadid Architects has just completed a 60k FIFA stadium in Xi’an, and currently has two 60k stadiums under construction in China.

John Sharkey is a visionary leader and the Project Director of Kai Tak Sports Park, one of the largest sports infrastructure projects in the world. With an outstanding track record, he leads a diverse team of experts in the design development, construction, and pre-opening phases of the project. Collaborating closely with renowned design, build and operate partners, Sharkey ensures a seamless integration of sports, retail, and entertainment, offering visitors an immersive and unparalleled experience.

Previously, as Executive Vice President, Europe at ASM Global, the world-leading venue management company, Sharkey spearheaded the business across Europe as part of the global leadership team. He delivered successful new venues in Aberdeen and Hull, launched venue project developments in Manchester, Stockholm and London and forged new venue operating and commercial partnerships in the UK and across continental Europe. As CEO of Scottish Exhibition Centre before that, he delivered the funding, construction and operation of the SSE Hydro Arena in Glasgow in 2013 which has since become one of the world’s leading arenas.

Additionally, he made significant strides in advancing the prestigious Kai Tak Sports Park project from PQQ through to successful tender award, further demonstrating his expertise in managing multi-faceted infrastructure ventures.

Sharkey’s unwavering dedication to gold standard venue management has cemented his status as a key industry leader. His genuine commitment to excellence and his adeptness in navigating complex challenges makes him an invaluable asset to Kai Tak Sports Park and the industry as a whole. With his exceptional leadership and passion, John Sharkey continues to shape the future of the sports and entertainment venue sector.