The 40-year-old Canadian succeeds Stacey Allaster, who was recently appointed as the new chief executive of the WTA.

 

Shoemaker, who joined the WTA nearly foure years ago, previously served as the tour’s chief operating officer, general counsel and head of the Asia-Pacific region, a role he will continue.

 

Shoemaker’s new job puts him in charge of the tour’s overall day-to-day operations and business affairs, tournament and player relations, and international television and digital media rights.

 

Since opening the China office, Shomaker's accomplishments include a successful negotiation of a four-year agreement with state-owned and controlled China Central Television (CCTV) for the broadcast of Sony Ericsson WTA Tour tennis in mainland China, reaching 335 million households - the first agreement of its kind for the Tour.

 

Among his many other accomplishments, Shoemaker assumed primary responsibility for negotiating the Tour's landmark six-year, $88 million (£54 million) title sponsorship agreement with Sony Ericsson and played an integral role negotiating and securing $84 million (£51 million) in agreements bringing the year-end Sony Ericsson Championships to Doha, Qatar from 2008 - 2010 and to Istanbul, Turkey from 2011 - 2013.

 

A corporate and commercial litigator, Shoemaker spent seven years practicing law at two of the most prestigious firms in New York, first at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, and then at Proskauer Rose LLP.

 

At Proskauer, Shoemaker specialized in sports-related client representation. As an advisor to both sports leagues and teams, Shoemaker engaged in all aspects of legal and business affairs for his clients, including the National Hockey League (NHL), Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), Major League Soccer (MLS), the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League and Major League Baseball's Florida Marlins.

 

During his years in New York, Shoemaker also served as an adjunct professor at Seton Hall University's School of Law and Stillman School of Business, as well as New York University's Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management.

 

Shoemaker began his career in 1996 as law clerk to the Right Honorable Antonio Lamer, Chief Justice of Canada, following his graduation from the University of Western Ontario Faculty of Law, where Shoemaker finished first in his class.

 

A native of Ottawa, Canada, Shoemaker, 38, also holds a Bachelor's degree in Political Science and International Relations from the University of Toronto (Trinity College).

 

A nationally-ranked junior alpine ski racer, Shoemaker hails from a family of accomplished tennis players.

 

His mother, Brenda Nunns Shoemaker, is a former Tour player and member of the Canadian Fed Cup team; his grandfather, Gilbert Nunns, held the number one ranking in Canada in 1930.