Cherry Alexander Named London 2017 Md

Cherry Alexander, UK Athletics’ head of international and televised events, has been named as the new managing director for the London 2017 International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) World Athletics Championships.

This sees the continuation of the working partnership with UK Athletics’ CEO and 2017 championship director Niels de Vos which has seen the organisation successfully bid for a number of European and World championship events in the last five years.

Alexander, who has worked in sport for 35 years, with 25 years at the national governing body, played a significant part in the athletics competition delivery during the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, receiving an MBE at the end of the year for services to sport. She is a previous winner of the Sunday Times Sportswomen of the year ‘Unsung Hero’ Award.

She has also been at the helm of the organising team who created and staged the Anniversary Games at the Olympic Stadium since 2013.

Commenting on the appointment, Niels de Vos said: “Cherry has been at the centre of planning for 2017 since winning UK Athletics bid for the event back in 2011. Her experience of staging major Athletics events is second to none and I am delighted that she has accepted the challenge of delivering the biggest event of them all – the IPC and IAAF world championships.” 

Ryan Montgomery, IPC summer sport director said: “Cherry is a natural choice for this role, her ability to get things done, backed up by more than two decades of athletics experience gives us great reassurance that London 2017 will deliver everything it promises.”

Alexander added: “I’m thrilled to take on this role for the 2017 World Championships. Next year will be an amazing time for the sport in the UK and we are determined to strive for the very best championships ever, delivered by the sport for the whole nation to enjoy.”