Gillian Wilmot has today been announced as the new Chair of sports coach UK - the technical agency responsible for the recruitment, development and retention of coaches within the UK.
Wilmot, is an experienced Chairman & Non-Executive Director and was recognised for governance excellence in the 2014 Sunday Times NED Awards. She runs Board Mentoring which works with CEOs and directors of leading UK and international companies.
Rod Carr, Chair of UK Sport, stressed the importance of coaching in elite sport and healthy and active lifestyles. He said: "We welcome Gillian to the sector at what is a critical time with the impending new government sports strategy. Coaching sits at the heart of everything we do and the success of our high performance system is dependent on high quality coaches.
“If as a nation we are committed to inspiring the next generation through sport to lead active and healthy lives then excellence in coaching at all levels will be critical to achieving this."
In 2012, Wilmot was appointed to the Industrial Development Advisory Board which advises Government on large investment projects and provides independent business advice to Ministers.
Her participative sporting interests include sailing, windsurfing, snowsports, swimming, golf and tennis. She also enjoys watching a wide range of sports including rugby.
Commenting on her new role, Gillian said: "Sport has a critical role to play in all our lives which is recognised in the new government strategy for sport. Within this, coaching has a critical role to play in achieving a transformation in the health and fitness of the whole of society.
“I'm looking forward to developing the new sports coach UK strategy, based on our sound foundation of excellence in research, innovation and the technical expertise of our team.”
For more information please visit the sports coach UK website