Double Olympian Aimee Willmott has been appointed as an athlete representative on the board of Commonwealth Games England on a four-year term.
Willmott, who won the 400IM representing Team England at the 2018 Commonwealth Games on Gold Coast, Australia, will help advise the governing body ahead of the 2022 Games to be held in Birmingham, England, from 27 July to 7 August.
The University of Stirling swimmer is one of two new athlete appointments to the board alongside Ama Agbeze, who captained England’s netball team to gold in 2018 with victory over hosts Australia.
The pair will attend their first board meeting in June 2020 as well as being members of the sports sub-committee.
Aimee Willmott: Photo Courtesy: Swim England
Willmott has won one gold and two silver medals over three Commonwealth Games after her first outing in Delhi, India, in 2010 which saw her contest three finals, finishing fifth and sixth respectively in the 400IM and 200IM.
The pair have a combined six Commonwealth Games between them and bring to three the number of athlete representatives on the board with para powerlifter Ali Jawad having started in July 2018 in addition to President Denise Lewis, the Sydney 2000 heptathlon champion.
Willmott, who was a Team England ambassador in 2018, said:
“I’m extremely honoured and excited that I’ve been accepted to the board of Commonwealth Games England.
“This is a really exciting opportunity for me. I’ve had such great success at the Commonwealth Games from the age of 17 up until the Gold Coast where I won gold in the pool on night one of the Games.
“I’m just really looking forward to sharing my experiences with the rest of the board and hopefully we can produce great athletes in the next generation coming through.”
Willmott also posted on social media, greeting everyone by wishing them “Happy St George’s Day” on the feast day of England’s patron saint.
The appointments achieves an equal gender split on the Commonwealth Games England board and chairman Ian Metcalfe said:
“We are delighted to have Ama and Aimee, two outstanding Commonwealth gold medal-winning athletes, and, equally important, exceptional people, joining our board at Commonwealth Games England. Their experience and knowledge of what it takes to perform at their best will provide invaluable insight through to Birmingham 2022 and beyond.
“We are particularly pleased that as an athlete-centric organisation, the appointment of Ama and Aimee further strengthens the depth of our board with three athlete representatives from different sports. These appointments also reinforce our commitment to diversity. I am honoured to welcome them both and look forward to building towards a home Games in Birmingham.”