UKAD reappoints two of its Board members on International Women’s Day

UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) has announced today, on International Women’s Day, the reappointment of two of its Board members, Dr Frances Akor and Professor Nicola Phillips.

Both Dr Akor and Professor Phillips began their tenure as UKAD Board members in October 2017 as Non-Executive Directors, and this has now been extended for a further four years - October 2021 to 30 September 2025.

The reappointment of Dr Akor and Professor Phillips means that women still account for the majority - five out of seven - of the UKAD Board members. Other female members include Pippa Britton, Dr Claire-Marie Roberts and Sarah Winckless MBE. The majority-female board works alongside the Chief Executive, Nicole Sapstead.

The theme for International Women’s Day 2021 is Choose to Challenge, which celebrates women’s achievements and those who choose to address gender inequality.

Speaking on the reappointments, UKAD Chair, Trevor Pearce said: “We are delighted that Frances and Nicola are remaining on the Board. They have become valuable members over the last four years, bringing a wealth of knowledge from their respective fields, as well as fresh perspectives on how we achieve our mandate to protect clean sport in the UK.

“Furthermore, we are proud to have a majority female Board and a female Chief Executive at the helm of our operations. Gender inequality is an ongoing issue in many areas of the sport sector, so we are proactively choosing to challenge this as an organisation with strong female leadership.

“We look forward to seeing what the future holds as we continue to work together in the coming years.”

More information on the UKAD Board members is available here.