Gerry Ryan at the lecturn(Image credit: Daniel Simms)
Following extensive restructuring and reform undertaken since last November, Cycling Australia (CA) has announced that it has appointed a new board and president to continue its governance reforms that will be aided by a loan from the Australian Sports Commission (ASC). The former CEO of the International Cricket Council Malcom Speed will replace Gerry Ryan as president of the national federation with his role to be ratified later this week.
The ASC announced details of a $2 million dollar loan to CA in order to stabilise its precarious financial position and ensure that its governance reforms can continue. ASC Chair John Wylie said a loan of $1.5 million would come from ASC, while CA's member states and Mountain Bike Australia would collectively loan another $500,000.
Ryan, who is also the team owner of Orica-GreenEdge, was elected president last year and welcomed his replacement Speed to the role.
"Under the leadership of one the nation's top sports administrators in Malcolm Speed, cycling can expect to grow even further in Australia," Ryan said.
Along with the selection of Speed, Ryan added that the new board, which was appointed following a rigorous assessment of an independent nominations committee chaired by Peter Bartels and comprising Don Argus, The Hon. Rod Kemp and Kate Palmer, would bring a new vigour and robustness to CA as it continues its reforms.
Having come under pressure from ASC in April for it lack of progression on corporate governance reform, the loan will bankroll improving financial and structural issues that CA has faced since the failure of a commercial joint venture that begun in 2010
"The ASC undertook an independent and rigorous financial analysis of CA including assessment of the various options available, " Wylie explained. "After much consideration, the ASC determined that the most effective way of protecting the sport's strongest assets – its high performance athletes and mass public appeal – was to grant the existing organisation a loan on the condition it continues its reform agenda.
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"The interest-bearing loan has been provided with a strict set of conditions, including the co-contribution by the sport's member states, complete governance overhaul, and ongoing financial oversight of the high performance program by the AIS."
Wyle added that the reforms begun under Ryan had shown the governing body was on the track.
"Pleasingly under Gerry Ryan's leadership, impressive governance reform has already been achieved and today's full board announcement provides further evidence of the sport's willingness to change," he said.
Ryan was appointed the CA president at the beginning of November last year along with interim CEO Adrian Anderson whose role concluded in May.
"Since I took over as president late last year a number of significant changes have taken place including a review of the sport's business which identified potential savings within the organisation, renegotiating a new broadcast deal and developing a commercial plan to attract new partners," said Ryan, who will oversee the caretaker board as a director.
"We have also made necessary governance reform including the move to a company limited by guarantee and made constitutional changes which align to the ASC's mandatory governance principles."
Cycling Australia board: Malcolm Speed (President-elect), David Ansell, Matt Dever, Linda Evans, Leeanne Grantham, Anthony Griffin, Justin Quill and Gerry Ryan (Appointed Director).
