The Executive Team

Paul Blanchard

Chief Executive

Paul has over 25 years’ experience in the sports industry.

He has worked in Cricket at The Oval, in Premier League and Scottish Football at Southampton FC and the SPL, the NFL in Europe with the Scottish Claymores and rugby league at Harlequins RL. Most recently he was CEO at The Surrey Sports Park, an elite athlete training and event venue based at The University of Surrey.

He has also served on the Advisory Board of British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) and was Chair of The County Sports Partnership, Active Surrey.

Paul joined Commonwealth Games England in August 2015.

Katherine Benjamin

Head of Stakeholder Programme

Katherine joined the team in March 2021 as the Head of Stakeholder Programme where she leads the engagement and events programme for a roster of key stakeholders in the lead-up to, and during, the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

She has significant experience in the sports and entertainment industry, and before joining Commonwealth Games England, she delivered a series of events and content projects as part of a strategic global Formula 1 partner activation.

Outside of work, Katherine is a passionate hockey player and despite being a defender, she can be found on the pitch on most Saturdays trying to recreate an Alex Danson diving goal.

Francesca Carter-Kelly

Head of Performance and Sport Engagement - Deputy Chef de Mission (Sport & Athletes)

Francesca is Commonwealth Games England’s Head of Performance and Sport Engagement, which involves working closely with National Governing Bodies to ensure the team and athletes are best supported in the lead up to and at the Games. 

Francesca was the Chef de Mission for Team Great Britain at the Winter World University Games in Russia in 2019 and oversaw the development and delivery of Team England’s preparation camp for the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games. 

Nicki Combarro

Chief Physiotherapist

Nicki will be the Chief Physiotherapist for Team England for the Birmingham 2020 Commonwealth games.

Over the past 24 years, Nicki has been involved in a multitude of International sporting events, including the Olympics in London and Rio, a number of summer and winter World University Games.

Nicki was Lead Physiotherapist at the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang in 2018 and the European Games in 2019.

Nicki has been part of the England’s Commonwealth Games physiotherapy team after volunteering for the organising committee at the Manchester Games in 2002.

Nicki was part of Team England in Glasgow 2014, Delhi 2010 and Melbourne 2006 supporting athletes and staff.

Chris Conway

Chief Financial Officer

Chris is Chief Financial Officer and Company Secretary. He has over 10 years’ experience in the sports sector comprising a number of roles in Australian sport. Most recently he was Finance Director at Badminton England.

Chris is a Chartered Management Accountant, a graduate member of the Chartered Governance Institute and holds an MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Management.

In a voluntary basis, he serves on the Governance and Finance Committee of GB Wheelchair Rugby.

Chris joined the organisation in 2018.

Francesca Crabtree

Operations Manager

Francesca joined Commonwealth Games England in 2020 as Operations Manager. 

As part of the Operations Team, she will lead the accreditation, ticketing and transport projects for Birmingham 2022. 

Francesca has experience working for a National Governing Body (British Triathlon) and in an operations role in the mass participation industry. She also held a sport management role at the Special Olympics in Abu Dhabi in 2019.

Matt Divall

Sport Manager

Matt is Commonwealth Games England’s Sport Manager having started in March 2021.

Matt brings experience from working in two sports; recently as England Pathway Manager at British Triathlon and previously as England Programme Manager at British Judo.

Over nearly 15 years, Matt has amassed experience as Team Leader for Judo at the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games, Baku 2015 European Games and at three editions of the European Youth Olympic Festival along with being Triathlon Team Leader at Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games.

Carys Edwards

Media and Communications Manager

Carys is the Media and Communications Manager at Commonwealth Games England, having joined the organisation in 2017. Her role involves overseeing Team England’s external communication through media outlets and digital platforms with an aim to share our values, athlete stories and celebrate success to inspire the nation.

At the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games, Carys planned and delivered the media operation at the Team England preparation camp and at Games time, worked with multiple sports as part of the press team. She also covered the Minsk 2019 European Games as part of Team GB’s delegation. 

Mark England OBE

Chef de Mission - Birmingham 2022

Mark England OBE will lead Team England as Chef de Mission for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. 

Mark is also Team GB’s Chef de Mission for the Tokyo 2021 Olympic Games and led the British team through the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, where they finished second only to Team USA in the medal table, collecting gold medals across a greater range of sports than any other nation. 

Mark was appointed Chef de Mission of Team GB in 2014 and his first major event leading the team was the inaugural European Games in Baku in 2015. He was previously Deputy Chef de Mission at six Olympic Games, including London 2012, and Chef de Mission at several Olympic Youth Festivals.

Dr Paul Ford MBE

Deputy Chef de Mission - Performance

Dr Paul Ford MBE will be Team England's Deputy Chef de Mission for Birmingham 2022, leading on performance. 

Paul has a PhD in Paediatric Exercise Physiology and was awarded an MBE for his services in sport.

He was Team GB's Deputy Chef de Mission for the last Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang 2018 and will take on the role again for the Tokyo 2021 Olympic Games and Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games. Paul also led the Team GB contingent as Chef de Mission at the Minsk 2019 European Games. 

Jodie Lawrence

Games Delivery Coordinator

Jodie joined Commonwealth Games England in 2020 as Games Delivery Intern, as part of her placement year at the University of Surrey. She has an exceptional passion for sport and events, and has delayed her return to university, joining the team as a full time employee to assist and be part of the action for Birmingham 2022.

Now, as Games Delivery Coordinator, Jodie sits in the operations team where she works with the Head of Kit operations to develop the kit itself, along with any other kit operations that sit with it.

Hollie Lunn

Games Delivery Coordinator

Hollie is involved in our Operations department, where she works with the Operations Manager in both accreditation and village operations for Birmingham 2022.

She previously worked for Commonwealth Games England in 2018-19 as the Event Operations Intern, where she predominantly aided with venue/hotel procurement. During her time at CGE, Hollie worked at both the School Games 2018 and the Netball World Cup 2019. As a keen netballer, she additionally holds the legacy of starting a mixed netball league in London, where the executive team have continued to enjoy and play following her leaving.

Hollie has returned to work with CGE in 2021 following graduating from the University of Surrey.

Tom Lush

Media and Communications Executive

Tom joined the team in February 2021 as the Media and Communications Executive. He completed his Masters degree at the University of Manchester in 2018, and upon leaving founded his own company and freelanced in sports media for the last two and a half years.

His role at Commonwealth Games England is particularly focused on digital media and content creation, liaising with our external PR and Communications agencies to create social content and strategize upcoming digital events.

Outside of his professional life Tom is a keen hockey player previously playing for Brooklands MUHC in the National Premiership for 6 years. 

Louise Mackie

Operations Director / Deputy Chef de Mission (Operations)

Louise has worked on international sport events since 2000, where she first worked as a sport volunteer at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. Following the Sydney Games, she worked for one of Australia’s leading event management companies, project managing events across Australia for client’s such as Swimming Australia and Surf Life Australia – two of the country’s most followed sports.
 
Australian born, Louise moved to the UK in 2007. She worked with the London 2012 Olympic Organising Committee, initially responsible for the logistics operation of the Aquatics Centre, before moving in to venue management, were she oversaw the Games-time operation.
 
Louise was Team England's Chef de Mission at the 2015 Commonwealth Youth Games in Samoa.
 
Louise joined Commonwealth Games England in January 2013.

Louise Pullan

Head of Kit Operations

Lou joined Commonwealth Games England in 2020 as Head of Kit Operations bringing with her specialist knowledge of design, development and production from the past 15 years in the sportswear industry.

Lou has worked with brands, athletes and teams internationally over her career and has a particular passion for para sports kit development.

Lou’s role is to lead the Team England kit for 2022 and having worked brand side for Glasgow 2014 she is delighted to be back in the team.

Caroline Rogers

Operations Manager

Caroline joined the team in April 2021 as Operations Manager following her most recent role as Franchise Director for Manchester Thunder, Vitality Netball Superleague Champions. 

Caroline brings with her 15 years’ experience having worked in senior operational roles for a range of different organisations, governing bodies and international federations within high performance sport. At Glasgow 2014, she worked for the Organising Committee and was responsible for the planning and delivery of a range of athlete services within the Athletes Village and the allocation of accommodation to all the 71 CGA’s.

She has held positions at Commonwealth Youth Games, Wimbledon Tennis Championships, ICC Cricket World Cup, Olympic Games, European Games where she lead on key activities such as venue and village operations, accreditation, media/ broadcast and test events. In addition, Caroline has served as an Executive Board member for GB Taekwondo and has worked for a sports consultancy company to provide expert advice to national governing bodies on matters relating to athlete welfare, anti-doping and governance in sport.

Her role at Commonwealth Games England is predominantly focused on the successful planning and delivery of village operations within a complex Athletes Village model to ensure that Team England athletes are provided with the right environment and resources to allow them to deliver their best ever performances.

 In her free time Caroline is a keen runner and regularly competes in long distance races.

Dr Mike Rossiter

Chief Medical Officer

Dr Mike Rossiter MB BS, MSc, FRCP, FFSEM (UK) is a Consultant in Sport and Exercise Medicine (SEM) , MSK Lead at Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Vice President for the Faculty of Sport & Exercise Medicine. 

Away from his NHS work, he has also worked with a variety of professional sports for 20 years, including Chief Medical Officer (CMO) for GB Hockey, attending four Commonwealth and three Olympic Games (including the Gold medal for the Women at Rio 2016) as well as European and World Cups as the team doctor. 

He has been club doctor at London Irish, Southampton FC and CMO for GB Synchronised Swimming and worked as a Sports Physician for the English Institute of Sport, at Bisham Abbey, for 9 years, treating elite able-bodied and disabled athletes across many sports. 

Mike was Chief Medical Officer for Team England at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia, and Team GB at The European Games 2019. He has been appointed as Team GB Deputy Chief Medical Officer for the Tokyo 2021 Olympic Games.

Emily Scott

Games Delivery Coordinator

Emily joined the team in March 2021 as Games Delivery Coordinator, where she will work closely with the Sport Team to provide support on key Games delivery projects for Birmingham 2022.

Emily started her career in sports events at the British Triathlon Federation, where she played a key-supporting role in the operational delivery of the 2018 Major Events Programme. This portfolio included the AJ Bell ITU World Triathlon Leeds and The Accenture Mixed Team Challenge Canary Wharf.
She then went on to work in event operations within the mass participation industry. 

Emily enjoys traveling and is a very keen sportswomen with a passion for swimming, running and golf. She has a 1st Class Bsc (Hons) degree in Sport, Physical Education and Coaching Science from the University of Birmingham.

Lauren Smith

Sport Manager

Lauren is Commonwealth Games England’s Sport Manager having started in 2020 following a role at the English Institute of Sport. Prior to that she worked for British Wheelchair Basketball as the Operations Manager and supported the GB teams at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. She also worked at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Lauren was a synchronised swimmer for 18 years and was the Great Britain Synchronised Swimming Team Captain. She competed at both the Melbourne 2006 and Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games where she won a bronze medal in Delhi. She has also attended multiple World and European Championships with numerous top 10 finishes and a bronze medal in the European Cup.

Harriet Smith

Senior Project Manager

Harriet is the Senior Project Manager for Commonwealth Games England, which involves working alongside all project owners to provide support and focus ahead of key timelines in the run up to a Games.

Harriet was the Project Manager for the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games and supported the delivery for Team Great Britain at the Summer World University Games in Naples in 2019.

Jordan Smith

Executive Assistant & Office Administrator

Jordan is Commonwealth Games England’s Executive Assistant and Office Administrator, which involves providing administrative support to the CEO, Chair and Board. Jordan is also responsible for managing the day to day operations that keep the organisation running smoothly.

Prior to starting at Commonwealth Games England in August 2019, Jordan spent two and a half years working and travelling around Australia and South East Asia after graduating from Bournemouth University.

Andy Thomas MVO

Head of Security

Andy Thomas MVO returns to Commonwealth Games England as Head of Security for the second time having performed the same role for the team on the Gold Coast in 2018. He is also the current Head of Security for the British Olympic and Paralympic Teams for Tokyo 2021 as well as Beijing in 2022 where he has previously overseen the security for Rio and PyeongChang as well as various Youth Olympic Games and Festivals in between.

A former Police Officer, he served 25 years with the Metropolitan Police, 13 of which with the UK Royal Family acting as a Personal Protection Officer to both HRH The Princess Royal and HRH The Prince of Wales.

Nathan Woodward

Finance Business Partner

Nathan is a member of the Commonwealth Games England finance team.  Nathan’s experience within the sports industry is from an athletes background, where he raced internationally for Great Britain in the 400m Hurdles.

Nathan began his accounting training at BDO whilst working in audit, before joining Commonwealth Games England in June 2019.

Jake Samuel

Games Delivery Intern

Jake is the Games Delivery Intern and is based in the ever-popular operations department. He works with the Operations Manager primarily on ticketing, accreditation and branding projects, as well as providing operational support to stakeholder projects and the QBR. 

Jake developed an interest in event management from his days at the University of Bath where he graduated with First-Class Honours in Sport and Social Science and spent time on his placement year at the PGA European Tour and Octagon.

Jake is an avid sportsman, in particular running, and has recently completed the 2021 London Marathon in under 3 hours

Tim Thomas

Games Delivery Coordinator

Tim joined Commonwealth Games England in 2019 as Games Delivery Intern, as part of his placement year at the University of Surrey. He completed his Business Management degree in the summer of 2021 before returning to the team full time as Games Delivery Coordinator. He works with the operations manager primarily on logistics and transport. 

Tim is a keen sports enthusiast and is always up for trying new sports. He has always showed a great interest in rugby and has found a new enthusiasm for running since picking it up in lockdown. 

Zoe Hainsworth

Team England Futures Coordinator

Zoe joined  Commonwealth Games England in mid-2021 and has taken a leading role in the Team England Futures programme working closely in collaboration with our friends at SportsAid. The TEF programme works towards delivering the first immersive Commonwealth Games experience for 1000 up-and-coming athletes.

Birmingham 2022 is not the first time that Zoe has 'worked' at a Commonwealth Games. She was also a volunteer at the 2018 edition of the Games on the Gold Coast.

Outside of work you will catch Zoe either on a hockey or cricket pitch – playing, coaching or volunteering, there’s never a quiet moment for her during either season!