We pride ourselves on having a diverse and forward-thinking Board that includes both independent and non-independent individuals. We have a highly experienced Board that offers a wide variety of skills and expertise in the sport, commercial, marketing, legal, finance, and athlete advocacy. Our Board comprises of nine (9) members with a gender split of 55% women / 45% men. Of these members, 78% are independent with the remaining 22% being associated with the sport.

BWL Board

• Rupinder Ashworth, Independent Chair  
• Matthew Curtain, CEO / General Secretary & Trustee of the BWL Foundation
• Philip Edmondson,  Senior Independent Board Member & Legal Counsel 
• Jenny Tong, Non-Executive Director & Chair of the Athletes Committee
• Nikki Absolom, Independent Board Member & Chair of the Finance and Audit Committee
• Sheona Southern, Independent Board Member
• Rebecca Wainwright, Independent Board Director & Chair of the BWL Foundation
• Josh Payne, Independent Board Director & Home Nations Lead
• Dave Leith, Independent Board Director & Chair of the Performance Committee
• Mark Martin, Company Secretary & Trustee of the BWL Foundation

To contact a member of the Board, please email tara.drake@britishweightlifting.org

View the BWL Board Schedule of Directors

Members of Staff

View the full staff organogram here

Our staff are at the heart of everything we do and we are incredibly proud of their commitment, professionalism and expertise.

Matthew Curtain, CEO / General Secretary: matthew.curtain@britishweightlifting.org 

Tara Drake, PA to the CEO: tara.drake@britishweightlifting.org

Kath Leonard, Chief Operating Officer: kath.leonard@britishweightlifting.org 

Operations and Governance

Lisa Smith, Operations and Governance Manager: lisa.smith@britishweightlifting.org

Safeguarding

Sue Ward, Lead Safeguarding Officer: sue.ward@britishweightlifting.org

Kath Leonard, Deputy Safeguarding Officer: kath.leonard@britishweightlifting.org 

Events 

Margaret Lynes, Head of Events: margaret.lynes@britishweightlifting.org

Eddie Halstead, Competitions & Logistics Lead: eddie.halstead@britishweightlifting.org 

Claire Deacon, Events Lead: claire.deacon@britishweightlifting.org 

Education 

Mark Hill, Education Development Manager: mark.hill@britishweightlifting.org

Ashleigh Smeaton, Education Operations Manager: ashleigh.smeaton@britishweightlifting.org 

Charlotte Peel, Education Support Officer: charlotte.peel@britishweightlifting.org

Jennifer Maysmor-Gee, Lead Educator: jennifer.maysmor-gee@britishweightlifting.org

Performance (Para Powerlifting)

Tom Whittaker, Paralympic Performance Director: tom.whittaker@britishweightlifting.org 

Ben Richens, Lead High Performance Coach: ben.richens@britishweightlifting.org 

Hugh Gilmore, Head of Mental Health & Performance Psychology & Coach Development Lead (Weightlifting): hugh.gilmore@britishweightlifting.org 

Connor MacDonald, Pathway Development Coach: connor.macdonald@britishweightlifting.org

Performance (Weightlifting)

Stuart Martin, Head of Performance: stuart.martin@britishweightlifting.org 

Emily Muskett OLY, GB Talent Lead: emily.muskett@britishweightlifting.org

Kristian McPhee, Home Nation Pathway Manager: kristian.mcphee@britishweightlifting.org

Dave Sawyer, National Coach: dave.sawyer@britishweightlifting.org  

Matt Keogh, Performance Pathway Manager: matt.keogh@britishweightlifting.org

Chris Murray, Pathway Officer: chris.murray@britishweightlifting.org

Beverly Kettlety, Pathway Operations Lead: beverly.kettelty@britishweightlifting.org

Nikolai Hanakam, Pathway Officer: nikolai.hanakam@britishweightlifting.org

Stephanie Ellis, Performance Pathway Administrator: stephanie.ellis@britishweightlifting.org

Finance

Mark Martin, Chief Finance Officer: mark.martin@britishweightlifting.org 

Sue Ward, Finance Manager: sue.ward@britishweightlifting.org

Hayley Moore, Finance Support Officer: hayley.moore@britishweightlifting.org

Marketing and Communications

Elicia Agar, Communications Manager: elicia.agar@britishweightlifting.org

Lilla Horváth, Marketing Manager: lilla.horvath@britishweightlifting.org

Sport Development 

Hannah Bussey, Sport Development Manager: hannah.bussey@britishweightlifting.org

International Advocacy

Matthew Curtain

IWF Executive Board Member

Cyrille Tchatchet II OLY

IWF Athletes' Commission Member & WADA Athlete Council Member

Emily Muskett OLY

Member, British Olympic Association Athletes' Commission

Louise Sugden PLY

ParalympicsGB Athletes’ Commission, ParalympicsGB