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@bwl.sport

View the BWL Board Schedule of Directors

Members of Staff

 

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@bwl.sport 

Tara Drake, PA to the CEO: tara.drake@bwl.sport

Kath Leonard, Chief Operating Officer: kath.leonard@bwl.sport 

Operations and Governance

Lisa Smith, Operations and Governance Manager: lisa.smith@bwl.sport

Safeguarding

Sue Ward, Lead Safeguarding Officer: sue.ward@bwl.sport

Kath Leonard, Deputy Safeguarding Officer: kath.leonard@bwl.sport 

Events 

Claire Deacon, Events Operations Manager: claire.deacon@bwl.sport 

Eddie Halstead, Competitions & Logistics Lead: eddie.halstead@bwl.sport 

Emily Thompson-Chisnall, Events Support Officer: emily.thompson-chisnall@bwl.sport

Education 

Mark Hill, Education Development Manager: mark.hill@bwl.sport

Ashleigh Smeaton, Education Operations Manager: ashleigh.smeaton@bwl.sport 

Charlotte Peel, Education Support Officer: charlotte.peel@bwl.sport

Jennifer Maysmor-Gee, Lead Educator: jennifer.maysmor-gee@bwl.sport

Performance (Para Powerlifting)

Tom Whittaker, Paralympic Performance Director: tom.whittaker@bwl.sport 

Ben Richens, Lead High Performance Coach: ben.richens@bwl.sport 

Scott Simon, Pathway Development Coach: scott.simon@bwl.sport

Performance (Weightlifting)

Stuart Martin, Head of Performance: stuart.martin@bwl.sport

Emily Muskett OLY, GB Talent Lead: emily.muskett@bwl.sport

TBA, Home Nation Pathway Manager:

Dave Sawyer, National Coach: dave.sawyer@bwl.sport

Matt Keogh, Performance Pathway Manager: matt.keogh@bwl.sport

Chris Murray, Pathway Officer: chris.murray@bwl.sport

Beverly Kettlety, Pathway Operations Lead: beverly.kettelty@bwl.sport

Nikolai Hanakam, Coach Development Officer: nikolai.hanakam@bwl.sport

Stephanie Ellis, Performance Pathway Administrator: stephanie.ellis@bwl.sport

Finance

Mark Martin, Chief Finance Officer: mark.martin@bwl.sport 

Sue Ward, Finance Manager: sue.ward@bwl.sport

Hayley Savage, Finance Support Officer: hayley.savage@bwl.sport

Marketing and Communications

Kate Cook, Head of Marketing: kate.cook@bwl.sport

Elicia Agar, Marketing & Communications Manager: elicia.agar@bwl.sport

Sport Development 

Hannah Bussey, Sport Development Manager: hannah.bussey@bwl.sport

International Advocacy

Matthew Curtain

IWF Executive Board Member & Technical Delegate Los Angeles 2028

Jo Calvino

IWF Coaching & Research Committee Member 

Cyrille Tchatchet II OLY

IWF Athletes' Commission Member, IWF Medical Committee Member & WADA Athlete Council Member.

Emily Muskett OLY

Member, British Olympic Association Athletes' Commission

Louise Sugden PLY

ParalympicsGB Athletes’ Commission, ParalympicsGB