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Lord Moynihan to leave his post as chairman of the BOA
Lord Moynihan is to step down as chairman of the British Olympic Association (BOA) later this year.
Moynihan, who also sat on the board of the the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (Locog), will stay in the post until elections for his successor are held.
A former Conservative MP, Moynihan has chaired the BOA since October 2005.
Prior to politics he won Olympic silver as cox of the Great Britain's men's rowing eight at the 1980 Moscow Games.
Analysis
This wasn't expected, and has taken quite a few people by surprise, not least members of his own staff. He's doing this because he wants to spend more time with his family and his business interests. That seems to be what's behind this. This will also give him more time to lobby for the Olympic legacy for school sport, which is something he is very passionate about.
In a letter to the BOA executive board, the National Olympic Committee and the BOA advisory board, Moynihan said: "The last two weeks have united and inspired the whole country and have surpassed all expectations.
"This was a job outstandingly well done by everyone who works at the BOA, the governing bodies and the volunteers who joined the BOA team in the run-up to the Games and I am exceptionally grateful to you all."
Moynihan has held his post at the BOA for seven years, re-elected unopposed in 2008.
However, in March 2011 he was suspended from the board of Locog along with chief executive Andy Hunt in a dispute over the allocation of funds after the Games in London. A deal to end the row was concluded later that spring.
During London 2012, Moynihan helped Team GB win 29 golds and finish in third place on the medal table.
He also vocally supported teenage Chinese swimmer Ye Shiwen following accusations from a United States swimming coach that cast doubt on the gold medallist's record-breaking time.
"She's been through Wada's programme and she's clean. That's the end of the story. Ye Shiwen deserves recognition for her talent," he said.
Comments
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Comment number 33.
Harvey Cherrola14th August 2012 - 19:16
Good job m'Lord. I forgive you for the football ID card idea from the 80's.
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Comment number 32.
Sean McDaid14th August 2012 - 1:49
This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.
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Comment number 31.
maxmerit13th August 2012 - 22:42
Moynihan has left the BOA with a critical financial mess. A good time for him to get out before the proverbial hits the fan. How about some lobster and Bollinger, my wealthy lord.
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Comment number 30.
Head In Hands13th August 2012 - 22:21
@25 Keith Bote:
"Why has Moynihan announced this before the start of the Paralympic games? It makes it look as if he was only interested in the "real" games, and that he couldn't care less about the Paralympics. Very poor".
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The British OLYMPIC Assocation hs no involvement with the Paralympics - the clue is in the name.
Chairman of the British Paralympic Association is Tim Reddish.
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Comment number 29.
Quick_Single13th August 2012 - 21:50
All I'll say is that it's easy to say the 'right' things in public. He's a politician after all. It's how you behave and what you do that counts. Credit where it's due - no word from athletes about their camp, the kit or the final prep. The rest was down to others. A great chance to rebuild and move on, building on an amazing games.
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Comments 5 of 33