Stuart Lancaster to be part of review into British Cycling
By Matt Westby
Last Updated: 25/05/16 4:18pm
Stuart Lancaster, the former head coach of the England rugby union team, has been appointed to the independent panel that will investigate the coaching culture at British Cycling.
The review was jointly commissioned by UK Sport and British Cycling last month after then-technical director Shane Sutton was accused of aiming sexist comments towards cyclist Jess Varnish.
Sutton later resigned following the emergence of further allegations of discriminatory behaviour towards para-cyclists, and bullying.
The review is being led by Annamarie Phelps, the chair of British Rowing and vice-chair of the British Paralympic Association, and she has now appointed her expert panel.
Lancaster, who was sacked by the Rugby Football Union after England's early exit at last year's World Cup, will be joined by John Mehrzad and Annie Panter.
Mehrzad is a specialist in sports, employment and commercial law and an independent chairman of the FA Chairman's Anti-Discrimination Panel. He won the Global Sports Law Barrister of the Year award in 2015 and 2016.
Panter is a retired hockey player who won bronze at the London 2012 Olympic Games for Great Britain. She is the co-chair of the International Hockey Federation Athletes' Committee.
One final panel member is still to be appointed.
Phelps said: "This expert panel has the range of skills and experience to enable us to conduct a thorough and robust review.
"The panel will work swiftly and diligently to assess the evidence and compile a report in the interest of the sport."
The review's terms of reference state that it "must include, but is not limited to, all forms of discrimination and bullying" and must investigate whether there are "fundamental behavioural issues within the climate and culture of British Cycling's World Class Programme".
It will conclude after the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Rio.
