uk athletics athletes' commission members 

Hannah is a World Championship silver medallist in the 1500m and has been a professional athlete since graduating from the University of Birmingham in 2009. She was indoor and outdoor NCAA champion before an international career that has seen her compete at two Commonwealth Games, two European Championships, two World Championships and the 2012 London Olympic Games. 

She is one of the commission's actively competing athletes and hopes that her presence in the competition environment will improve the commission's perspective on what it's like being a current athlete. 

She joined the commission because she is passionate about optimising communication between athletes and our governing body to enable an effective and positive relationship. She is also passionate about the welfare of athletes throughout their career and hopes to see the conversion of more world class athletes into world class coaches. 

Hannah put herself forward for chair of as she felt well-placed to compile and present athlete opinions and is excited about driving the commission's agendas to bring about significant and positive changes. 

John Pares is an ex-rugby player turned endurance athlete who won Commonwealth gold and bronze for Wales at 24-hour running in 2011 and 2009 respectively. He represented Great Britain & Northern Ireland at four World and European Championships between 2007 and 2013, and was part of a bronze medal winning team in the latter in 2010. He has also represented Wales five times over the 100km discipline.

Since retiring from the international competition, John has taken over as manager of the British 24-hour team, thus continuing to work closely with athletes at representative level. While working with the squad, he has helped them identify their values of performance, team spirit, longevity and confidence, something equally applicable to him as an individual and to the Athletes’ Commission.

John brings 30 years of international business experience to the role, including HR, project management and Health & Safety, and has worked closely with governments and government authorities.

His main role has always been to develop individuals and high-performing teams by challenging, supporting, coaching and listening, something that is clearly applicable to British Athletics. John has a close affinity with ultra-distance athletes and having competed at the highest level while developing a career outside of athletics, he feels he is experienced to represent all hard-working athletes and is looking forward to making a contribution to the future of our sport through the Athletes Commission.  

Richard retired from athletics in 2016 having competed for both England and Great Britain & Northern Ireland for over a decade in the 400m hurdles. Richard is a former British champion and won a bronze medal for England in the 4x400m relay at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India in 2010.  

Richard studied law alongside his athletics career and is now a qualified solicitor specialising in the area of sports law. His involvement in athletics has grown by virtue of his dealings with a number of athletics-related legal matters on a regular basis.  

Richard’s motivations for becoming involved with the Commission are a general passion for the sport and to create a link and further transparency between the governing body and athletes. Richard is also keen to ensure that the views and ideas of the athletes are given sufficient weight at board level with the ultimate aim of driving the sport forwards on a positive basis.  

He hopes to assist the Commission with general legal guidance and has a specific interest in helping athletes with issues stemming from selection and funding related matters.  

Robbie is a British Athletics ultra-distance international specialising in 24-hour racing. He put himself forward to the Athletes’ Commission with the hope of improving athlete welfare and the prospects for future generations to come by utilising the expertise of the commission. 

He is also an ultra-endurance coach, currently studying a MSc Performance Coaching at the University of Stirling and is competing internationally alongside this. He is an advocate for anti-doping education and athlete health, and sees the Commission as having a duty of care for athletes across a wide range of subjects.

Tom is the current British record holder for the 20km race walk. He previously studied and now trains full-time at Leeds Beckett University and has been part of the British Athletics World Class Programme.

His international athletics career has seen him compete at the 2016 Olympic Games, one Commonwealth Games, one European championships and two world championships. He has also set six British records and currently holds the world record for the one mile walk and indoor 3000m walk.

His passion for his event and his strength of character has made him a valuable member of the British Athletics team. He has fought hard over the years for the promotion and inclusion of race walking and was rewarded recently with its addition to the programme at both the IAAF Diamond League meetings in Birmingham and London.

Tom put himself forward to be part of the Athletes’ Commission as he strives to give all athletes a voice and representation regardless of their event group or background.

As a qualified athletics coach and track official, Tom is also able to see things from the perspective of the key people volunteering every day within the sport and the importance of their roles.

Biography to follow 

Abdul is a London 2012 Olympian. He won the English and British titles in 2011 in the discus. Following this, he went on to represent Great Britain & Northern Ireland at World and European Championships, and the Olympic Games.  

He is driven by his own experiences and the support network that has assisted in his journey. He recognises the potential to bridge the gap between athletes and the resources available and how the connect is the invaluable difference between success and failure.  

As a commission member, Abdul will focus his efforts in embedding a transitional process from sport to industry. He is a private banker who managed both his career at the bank whilst on his Olympic journey. He understands the importance of the balance of both and is testament of its benefits. 

Dai is a 400m hurdler, winning World, European and Commonwealth gold. He was also captain of the Team GB athletics squad for the London 2012 Olympic Games.  

Throughout his career, he has trained across the world, both while being on and off the British Athletics World Class Programme. He has been to competitions of all levels, starting as a junior, progressing to university championships and then on to international stage.

He is passionate about the sport and hopes these experiences can help provide insight to the commission, which in turn will help create a more successful future for British athletes. 

Stephen is a Paralympic athlete who has represented Great Britain for over 20 years, mainly in the F32 club throw event. He has competed in six Paralympic Games, seven World Championships and five European Championships, winning over 27 international medals. 

In 1996 he became Britain's youngest ever track and field Olympic or Paralympic gold medallist at the Atlanta Games. He then went on to be undefeated in all competitions until 2005.

Stephen held the F32 club throw world record from 1997 to 2008 and won gold at both the Sydney and Athens Paralympics, before agonisingly missing out on a third successive title in Beijing, coming away with silver.

At the London 2012 Paralympics, he was named team captain for the British athletics team. After London, Stephen had hip replacement surgery and came back to win bronze at the Rio 2016 Paralympics. 

He was born with cerebral palsy, a form of brain damage that affects signals from the brain to the muscles and makes balance and coordination more difficult than usual. 

Stephen holds a number of positions on boards and committees, including being a member of the World Para Athletics Athlete Advisory Group; secretary of NUDSA (Newcastle United Disabled Supporters Association); and Chairman of Northumberland FA Inclusion Advisory Group. 

In 2013, he FoundedSMILE Through Sport - A non-profit community interest company that aims to inspire, educate and promote the enjoyment of disability sport through training and sport development. As part of his role, Stephen delivers motivational speaking and coaching. 

Stephen is passionate about athletics and joined the Athletes’ Commission to help the development of the sport, improve processes and standard to ensure more people can access the sport and reap the benefits. 

Isobel Pooley (High Jump) 

Isobel is a high jumper with experience of competing at the top levels, including the world Championships in 2015. A long period of injury has recently given her the opportunity to get involved in the Commission.

Over her five years on the British Athletics World Class Programme, she has recognised the need to improve athlete engagement and the awareness of mental health within the programme.

Isobel is a keen communicator and wants to promote the dialogue between athletes and the governing body. She believes that by working together, athletes and staff can increase well-being and subsequently enhance performance. 

Isobel trained at the National Performance Institute in Loughborough for several years and worked closely with a number of staff at British Athletics during that time. She would like to see more athletes take the initiative and give their feedback via the commission so that they can enjoy a better experience of world class sport. 

Goldie is an Olympic bronze medallist, three-time Olympian and British record holder for the javelin. She is a former Great Britain team captain, most notably in 2014 when the team won the most medals at a European Championships in British Athletics history.

She won 11 national titles and represented Great Britain & Northern Ireland at five world and three European Championships, making finals in both.

She is a passionate advocate of athlete representation in order to drive performance from both staff and athletes. Goldie has been a board member of the British Olympic Association Athlete Commission for the past seven years having been re-elected for a second term by her Olympic peers. This gives Goldie the opportunity to sit on the British Athletics Athletes’ Commission as an ex-officio member.

Having made the transition out of sport into business since retiring, Goldie believes current and retired athletes should be educated and supported in order to transition out of their sporting careers more effectively. She is also very keen to help enhance standards within coaching in order to better enable athletes in all events to reach the top of their sport and fulfil their athletic potential.

Vanessa Wallace (F34 Shot Put) 

Vanessa is a Paralympic thrower and the current triple British record holder for shot put, javelin and discus in the F34 class. 

She is a student at the University of East London doing her undergraduate in Sports & Exercise Science and is studying for her Athletics Coach licence.

Nessa was appointed to the Inspiration Programme Board for the London 2017 World Para Athletics Championships, playing a key role in the organisation ahead of the Championships.

She has joined the Athletes' Commission to be a vocal advocate for all athletes and to encourage and support positive changes within our sport, including in areas such as coach support and the welfare of athletes on the development pathway.