With a global championship spanning multiple markets and an ambitious growth strategy, its communications team is balancing the demands of delivering a major international sporting calendar with the longer-term strategic work needed to support the business.

I was brought in to provide additional senior-level communications capacity – working alongside the in-house team to take ownership of priority strategic projects while allowing them to stay focused on the day-to-day demands of delivering the championship.

My role has spanned a range of projects across corporate, commercial and championship communications. This has included developing communications strategy and narrative around SailGP’s longer-term business ambitions, supporting future calendar communications, shaping the positioning and communications approach for new commercial initiatives and providing strategic input into projects designed to grow the profile and reputation of the championship.

Working across different teams and senior stakeholders, I’ve been able to get under the skin of projects quickly, provide experienced communications counsel and turn complex commercial or strategic thinking into clear narratives and practical communications plans.

THE WORK

• Strategic communications counsel and additional senior team capacity

• Corporate and B2B narrative development

• Long-term strategy communications

• Global calendar communications planning

• Commercial partnership and new business communications

• Reputation-building projects and awards strategy

• Senior stakeholder engagement

• Communications planning from strategy through to delivery

In high-performance sport, athletes and coaches invest huge amounts of time developing the physical, technical and psychological capabilities that underpin performance. Communication, despite influencing so much of what happens around performance, is rarely given the same deliberate attention.

I was invited to Girona, home to a thriving community of professional cyclists and triathletes, to work with elite athletes, coaches and teams and explore a different approach: what happens when we treat communication as a performance discipline in its own right?

Drawing on more than 15 years working across Olympic, Paralympic and professional sport, I designed and delivered interactive sessions exploring how the way we communicate can influence confidence, relationships, leadership and team culture – and how those things create the conditions for people to perform.

Rather than focusing on traditional media training, the sessions turned the lens inwards. We explored personal communication styles, how communication changes under pressure, the ability to influence and connect with different people, and how athletes and coaches can become more deliberate about the language and behaviours they use every day.

The result was a new way of thinking about a skill we often take for granted. Athletes and coaches left with practical tools they could apply immediately, but also a bigger question: if communication can influence how people think, feel, connect and perform, why wouldn't we train it?

THE WORK

• Performance Communication workshop design

• Athlete and coach development

• Communication styles and self-awareness

• Communication and influence under pressure

• Leadership and team communication

• High-performance culture

• Practical tools and individual reflection

I provide senior-level communications support to the UK Sports Institute, working closely with its Directors Team and communications function during a significant period of organisational change.

My role combines strategic counsel with hands-on communications leadership – advising senior leaders on how and when to communicate, developing organisation-wide narratives and helping turn complex or sensitive information into communications that are clear, considered and focused on the people receiving them.

Working across the organisation and wider high-performance system requires an understanding of a complex stakeholder environment, where people, teams and organisations are closely connected. A key part of my role is anticipating how communications will land with different audiences and helping leaders navigate that complexity.

Alongside change communications, I provide additional senior capacity across priority projects, stepping in where experienced communications support is needed and working closely with the internal team from strategy through to delivery.

THE WORK

• Strategic communications counsel to senior leaders

• Change communications strategy and planning

• Leadership communications

• Organisational narrative and messaging

• Employee and stakeholder engagement

• Senior communications team support

• Priority strategic projects

I was brought in by British Cycling to lead the communications for the inaugural Lloyds Tour of Britain Women, with a clear brief: establish a compelling narrative for the new event and generate widespread, positive media coverage.

With less than three months until the opening stage, I developed and delivered the communications strategy from launch through to race week – combining proactive media relations, athlete storytelling, partnership announcements and fan-focused content to build momentum around the event.

The strategy was designed to engage established cycling audiences while taking the race and its riders to a much broader mainstream audience. Working closely with teams, athletes, partners and stakeholders, I led the press operation across all four stages of the Tour and used strong relationships with national, broadcast and cycling media to maximise coverage throughout.

The result was more than 300 pieces of coverage before, during and after the event, with major broadcasters and national publications represented throughout the Tour and a strong media platform established for the new race.

THE WORK

• Communications strategy and planning

• Event communications leadership

• National and cycling media relations

• Athlete and team storytelling

• Press office and media operations

• Partnership and stakeholder communications

• Content and fan-focused storytelling

ParalympicsGB brought me in to lead the communications for the Homecoming of more than 200 British athletes returning from the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.

The ambition was bigger than simply delivering a successful event. We wanted to create a national media moment that reflected the scale of the athletes’ achievements and ensured Paralympic sport commanded the mainstream attention it deserved.

I developed and led a targeted communications and media strategy, working closely with ParalympicsGB, athletes, broadcasters and media to build anticipation around the Homecoming and maximise the opportunity presented by having the team back together in the UK.

Every major UK broadcaster attended, generating widespread coverage across BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, Sky News and Sky Sports News, alongside prominent national print and online coverage.

The Homecoming gave athletes a platform to tell the stories behind their performances and helped extend the impact of Paris 2024 beyond the Games themselves – turning their return home into another moment for British audiences to connect with Paralympic sport.

THE WORK

• Strategic communications leadership

• National media strategy and relations

• Event communications and media operations

• Athlete engagement and storytelling

• Broadcast planning and coordination

• Senior stakeholder management

• Press office delivery

When the UK Government announced it would remove the dedicated Minister of State for Disabled People, British Wheelchair Basketball and ParalympicsGB wanted to use the collective voice of sport to challenge the decision.

I worked with both organisations to develop a communications and advocacy campaign that would put the issue firmly on the agenda and build pressure for the decision to be reconsidered.

At the heart of the campaign was an open letter to the Prime Minister, ultimately backed by 56 organisations from across the sport and physical activity community. Alongside coordinating the communications around the letter, we developed a targeted media strategy and secured an exclusive with national media to bring the issue to a much wider audience.

The campaign formed part of a much broader effort by disability organisations, campaigners and individuals calling on Government to reconsider. Weeks later, the decision was reversed and the dedicated Minister for Disabled People role reinstated, with the campaigning efforts from across sport recognised as having contributed to the pressure for change.

It was a powerful example of what communications can do beyond building profile – bringing organisations together around a shared issue, giving people a voice and helping create momentum for real change.

THE WORK

• Advocacy and influencing strategy

• Campaign strategy and narrative

• Open letter and stakeholder mobilisation

• Political and stakeholder communications

• National media strategy

• Partner communications and coordination

• Senior spokesperson messaging