Board Members
Steve Hooker OAM – Chair
Steve Hooker OAM was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 2017 as an Athlete Member for his contribution to the sport of Athletics and was the first Pole Vaulter to be inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame.
He remains one of only a handful of athletes to hold Olympic, World Championship, IAAF World Indoor Championship and IAAF Continental Cup titles simultaneously, after completing the winning set in 2010, and was also the first Australian man to hold both the Olympic and World titles concurrently.
Steve also served for five years on the board of the Australian Olympic Committee Board, including Chairman of the Australian Olympic Committee Athletes Commission . Steve finished up a 5-year period as Chief Executive Officer of Resimax Group and is the director of his own Property Development Business iHi Projects.
Achievements
- 2008: Appointed Captain of the Australian Athletics Team
- 2012: Appointed to the AOC Athletes Commission
- 2016: Appointed Chair of the AOC Athletes Commission
- 2016: Appointed to the Australian Olympic Foundation/ Australian Olympic Committee
- 2016: Appointed CEO of Dr Me
- 2017: Inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame
- 2017: Appointed CEO of Resimix Group
- 2023: Appointed to the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Board
- 2026: Elected Chair of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Board
Kim Brennan AM – Athlete Member Director
Kim Brennan AM is a sixteen-time national champion, two-time World Champion, three-time Olympian and Olympic gold medallist, accomplished corporate executive, and an Athlete Member of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame. She is also a winner of the Thomas Keller medal, awarded once each year for lifetime contribution to, and achievement in, the sport of rowing worldwide.
Kim brings a unique blend of elite sporting achievement and deep corporate governance expertise to the board. As a technology consulting partner at EY Australia, she specializes in enterprise strategy, artificial intelligence transformation, and large-scale business architecture. A qualified lawyer, Kim has successfully translated the dedication, resilience, and strategic thinking of an Olympic champion into high-impact corporate leadership, advising organisations on navigating complex technological and operational shifts.
Her athletic career is etched in Australian sporting history. Originally an elite track and field athlete who won silver in the 400m hurdles at the 2001 World Youth Championships, injury prompted her transition to rowing in 2005. Over an extraordinary decade on the water, Kim claimed an Olympic gold medal in the single sculls at the 2016 Rio Olympics, alongside silver and bronze medals at the 2012 London Olympics, and two World Championship titles. Her leadership was further recognised when she was selected as Australia’s flag bearer for the Rio Closing Ceremony.
Beyond her competitive achievements, Kim has been a passionate advocate for athlete welfare and sports governance. She has served as Chair and Deputy Chair of the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) Athletes’ Commission and has sat on the AOC High Performance Committee, the AIS Ethics Committee, the Rowing Australia Athletes’ Commission and the Australian Sports Foundation Board, where she chaired the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee.
Kim was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 2017 for significant service to rowing, the welfare of elite athletes, her gold medal win at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, and her broader contributions to the community. She was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 2023. Recognised as one of Australia’s 100 Women of Influence by the Australian Financial Review in 2018, Kim remains dedicated to fostering excellence, integrity, and sustainable growth across both the sporting and corporate landscapes.
Achievements
- 2010 – 2013 and 2016: Rowing Australia Awards Female Athlete of the Year
- 2013: AIS Sport Performance Awards Female Athlete of the Year
- 2013: World Rowing Federation Female Athlete of the Year
- 2016: AIS Sport Performance Awards Female Athlete of the Year
- 2016: Gina Rinehart Rowing Leadership Award
- 2016: Women’s Health ISWIS Sportswoman of the Year Award
- 2017: Appointed Member of the Order of Australia (AM)
- 2018: AFR 100 Women of Influence
- 2019: World Rowing Federation Thomas Keller Medal Award
- 2023: Inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame
- 2026: Appointed to the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Board
Mark Fitzgibbon – Independent Director
Mark led the nib Group since 2002 as Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director and retired in late 2024. During his tenure nib has grown from a regionally based mutual health fund to become an ASX 100 company with a portfolio of healthcare businesses across Australia and New Zealand. nib also has significant businesses in disability support, life insurance in New Zealand and travel insurance globally.
Mark is well known for his progressive and entrepreneurial approach. nib has a long track record of challenging business models and innovation. In its core private health insurance business, nib has consistently outgrown the industry average with continuous brand, product and distribution development. Today, nib covers or supports about 2 million people.
Mark began his career in local government culminating in him leading three significant Councils in NSW. He was well known as a business and industry reformer and very much values the experience in dealing with grass roots politics, a wide diversity of trades and professions and community expectations.
Mark was subsequently Chief Executive Officer at Clubs NSW and Clubs Australia the peak industry bodies for registered Clubs. In that role, Mark led an agenda of modernisation, repaired strained relationships with government and developed responsible gambling practice across the sector. During his tenure, Clubs NSW was also a major sponsor of the 2000 Sydney Olympics, better connecting the Olympics with regional NSW.
Achievements
- Masters in Business Administration (UTS)
- Masters in Arts (Applied Research – MGSM)
- Harvard Business School Education in Global Strategic Management
- 2001: Appointed Chairman of Honeysuckle Health
- 2002: Appointed as CEO of nib Holdings
- 2005-2022: Appointed as Director of Private Health Association
- 2024 Appointed to the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Board
Peter Montgomery AM – General Member Director
Peter Montgomery AM has spent his working life across water polo, law and business. He played 510 international matches for Australia, 440 of them Tests, and captained the national team 167 times. He competed at four Olympic Games and led the side as captain at Los Angeles 1984, where Australia finished fifth – still the equal best result by an Australian men’s water polo team, matched at Barcelona 1992.
He first made the Olympic team for Munich 1972, the same year he played in the World Selection Team at the FINA Gala, and was vice-captain at Montreal 1976 and Moscow 1980. He also played four World Championships (1973, 1975, 1978 and, as captain, 1982) and the 1981 World Cup as captain.
His administrative career began while he was still playing. Peter was Honorary Secretary of the FINA Water Polo Committee from 1984 to 1992, a period in which the committee ran two Olympic tournaments, two World Championships and four World Cups. He was foundation chairman of the Australian Olympic Committee Athletes’ Commission from 1984 to 1992, a member of the IOC Athletes’ Commission from 1988 to 1999, and chaired its Atlanta 1996 and Sydney 2000 working groups. From 1995 to 1999 he was foundation President of the World Olympians Association and the athlete representative on the board of the International Court of Arbitration for Sport.
He served on the AOC Executive Board from 1989 to 2016 and was a Vice-President from 2001 to 2016. He was part of the Sydney 2000 bid and lobby team from 1991 to 1993, a member of the IOC’s Sydney 2000 Co-ordination Commission, and Assistant Chef de Mission of the Australian team at Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000, Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008. His other appointments include the boards of the Australian Institute of Sport (1984-1989) and the Australian Sports Commission (1988-1989), foundation trustee of the State Sports Centre Trust at Homebush Bay, foundation member of the Australian Water Polo Association Executive (1982-1992), and IOC service on the Cultural Commission, the Academy and Education Commission, the Commission for Sport and Law and the 1991 Bidding City Evaluation Commission for the 1998 Games.
Outside sport Peter is a solicitor, and has worked as a resort and hotel operator, property developer and public company director. All of his playing was amateur and all of his administrative roles honorary.
Peter received the Medal of the Order of Australia in 1986 for service to water polo and was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 2006. He was awarded the IOC Trophy for “Sport and Universality” and the IOC Women and Sport Diploma in 2000, and the IOC Order in 2002. He joined the Path of Champions at Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre in 2008, was inducted into the Water Polo Australia Hall of Fame and the Sport Australia Hall of Fame as a General Member in 2009, and into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 2013. He is also a member of the NSW Hall of Champions, and joined the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Board in 2026.
Achievements
- 1982-1992: Foundation member, Australian Water Polo Association Executive
- 1984-1992: Honorary Secretary, FINA Water Polo Committee
- 1984-1992: Foundation Chairman, Australian Olympic Committee Athletes’ Commission
- 1986: Awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for service to water polo
- 1988-1999: Member, IOC Athletes’ Commission
- 1995-1999: Foundation President, World Olympians Association
- 1995-1999: Athlete representative, board of the International Court of Arbitration for Sport
- 2000: Awarded the IOC Trophy for “Sport and Universality” and the IOC Women and Sport Diploma
- 2001-2016: Vice-President, Australian Olympic Committee
- 2002: Awarded the IOC Order
- 2006: Made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM)
- 2008: Inducted into the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre Path of Champions
- 2009: Inducted as a General Member of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame
- 2009: Inducted into the Water Polo Australia Hall of Fame
- 2013: Inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame
- 2026: Appointed to the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Board
- Member of the NSW Hall of Champions
Karen Murphy AM – Athlete Member Director
Karen Murphy AM is one of Australia’s greatest lawn bowlers, with a career spanning more than three decades that redefined the sport both in Australia and on the world stage. What started as a childhood passion which saw her first grace the Shoalhaven Heads Bowls Club greens as an 11-year-old turned into an international career that took her to almost every part of the globe in more than 660 appearances for her country.
Karen’s most significant achievement came with back-to-back singles gold medals at the World Championships. She won the first in Adelaide in 2012, watched on by her family and a roaring parochial crowd in the stands. She also won gold in the triples at the same event. Importantly, she backed up her singles success with victory in Christchurch four years later in a stunning final delivery that guaranteed her place in history as only the third female bowler — and first Australian — to complete back-to-back world championship singles golds. Her overall world championship record ended up being five gold medals in various categories as well as a silver and three bronze medals.
Karen represented Australia at the 1998, 2002, 2006, 2014 and 2018 Commonwealth Games, winning gold in the pairs at Melbourne 2006 and three silver medals across the singles, pairs, triples and fours disciplines. Karen has also coached at a Commonwealth Games 2022 and 2026. In all, Karen won more than 300 titles across her career, playing in countless events around the world and helping to foster a younger, more vibrant look to the sport.
Karen is a proud trailblazer who inspired a new generation of young women to take up the game, and women’s bowls in Australia reached world number one status during her era. After announcing her retirement from international competition in 2019, she has maintained her association with the sport as National Assistant Coach and Head Para Coach of the Jackaroos, helping to provide a pathway for the next generation of stars.
Karen was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2021 Australia Day Honours for significant service to lawn bowls as an elite player at the international level, and was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 2024.
Achievements
- 2000: Australian Sports Medal
- 2006: Commonwealth Games Gold Medal
- 2011: Inaugural inductee, Bowls Australia Hall of Fame
- 2012: World Singles and Triples Champion 2014: Bowls Australia Female Bowler of the Year
- 2016: World Singles Champion
- 2021: Appointed Member of the Order of Australia (AM)
- 2023: Elevated to Legend status, Bowls Australia Hall of Fame
- 2024: Inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame
- 2025: Appointed to the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Selection Committee
- 2025: Inaugural inductee, World Bowls Hall of Fame
- 2026: Appointed to the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Board
Rachael Neumann – Independent Director
Rachael Neumann plays across many parts of the startup ecosystem, primarily as the founder of Flying Fox Ventures, an early-stage investment firm designed to mobilise more investment into early-stage startups and attract new investors to the space. Flying Fox has quickly emerged as the most active early-stage investor in Australia with over 50 investments in cutting-edge technology, SaaS, and marketplace businesses across all industries.
Rachael also works to create the right policy environment that’s conducive to a thriving sector, having served on the Board for StartupAus and has two federal ministerial appointments on the Entrepreneurs’ Programme Committee (EPC) and Boosting Female Founders Initiative (BFFI), distributing funding on behalf of the Department of Industry.
Previously as Head of Startups in ANZ for Amazon Web Services, Rachael supported thousands of startups and more established scaleups on their growth journeys. Prior to this, Rachael was the Managing Director of Eventbrite Australia, launching the Melbourne-based office to further serve the APAC market. Before stepping into the MD role, Rachael served as Eventbrite’s Director of Customer Experience Strategy in Silicon Valley. In her early career, Rachael was a Case Team Leader at Bain & Company in Silicon Valley and Australia, advising Technology, Private Equity, Consumer Products, and Retail businesses, and continues to bring this interdisciplinary mindset and structured problem-solving approach to everything she does.
Matching her passion for startups is her love for sport and modern art. Rachael is proud to be one of the founding owners of Angel City Football Club, America’s first majority women-owned, women-run, women’s sports teams based in LA. In 2024, ACFC was identified as the most valuable women’s sport franchise in the world. She serves on the Board of Directors for the Australian Sports Hall of Fame. On the art side of things, Rachael proudly serves on the Council of Trustees for the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) and serves on the Investment Committee.
Educated in the States with an undergraduate degree from Stanford University where was a scholar-athlete, playing Division 1 NCAA lacrosse, and two Masters degrees from Columbia University, Rachael now proudly calls Melbourne home, alongside her partner Jodie and their two children.
Achievements
- 2003: Graduated from Stanford University – Bachelor of Arts with Honors
- 2009: Graduated from Columbia Mailman School of Public Health – Masters of Public Health with Honors
- 2009: Graduated from Columbia Business School – MBA with Dean’s List Honors
- 2017: Appointed Chair of the Board for StartupAus
- 2018: Appointed to serve on the Entrepreneurs’ Programme Committee (EPC)
- 2019: Appointed to serve on the Boosting Female Founders Initiative (BFFI)
- 2020: Appointed to the Council of Trustees of the National Gallery of Victoria
- 2023: Awarded the Investor of the Year by the State of Victoria
- 2024: Appointed to the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Board
Hon. Martin Pakula – Independent Director
Martin Pakula completed a Bachelor of Economics at Monash University in 1989 and an Honours Degree in Law in 1991. After leaving university Martin completed articles at Macpherson and Kelley and was admitted to practice in 1993.
From 1993 to 2006, Martin worked as as an official of the National Union of Workers where he served as Assistant Secretary of the Victorian Branch from 2000-2004 and as Victorian Branch Secretary and National Vice President from 2004-2006. Martin also served as a Director of LUCRF Super from 2004-2006.
In 2006 Martin was elected to the Victorian Legislative Council electorate of Western Metropolitan where he served till 2013 and in 2013 he was elected to the Legislative Assembly seat of Lyndhurst (later renamed Keysborough) which he represented till 2022.
Whilst in State Parliament Martin held a range of ministerial portfolios including Minister for Industry and Trade, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for Public Transport, Attorney General, Minister for Racing, Minster for Tourism, Sport and Major Events and Minister for Jobs and Innovation
Martin is a Major Projects Advisor at the Australian Football League and a Non-Executive Director of Helloworld Travel Limited. In October 2023 Martin Pakula was named the Chairman of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation. He was appointed to the Chair of Crown Melbourne in 2025.
Achievements
- 1989: Graduated from Monash University – Bachelor of Economics
- 1991: Graduated from Monash University – Honours Degree in Law
- 2006: Elected to the Victorian Legislative Council
- 2013: Elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly
- 2023: Appointed to the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Board
- 2023: Appointed Chairman of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation
- 2025: Appointed Chairman of Crown Melbourne
Petria Thomas OAM – Athlete Member Director
Petria Thomas OAM OLY is one of Australia’s most accomplished and admired swimmers. Raised in Mullumbimby, she rose to international prominence over a 12‑year career marked by exceptional talent and remarkable resilience. She is a triple Olympic gold medallist, winner of 15 national titles, and the first woman to claim the same event—the 100m butterfly—at three consecutive Commonwealth Games. In total, she earned 8 Olympic, 12 Commonwealth Games and 16 World Championship medals, captained the Australian Swim team, and was honoured
with three AIS Athlete of the Year awards. Her achievements have been recognised through induction into both the Sport Australia Hall of Fame and the International Swimming Hall of Fame.
Since retiring after her standout performances at the 2004 Athens Olympics, Petria has become a respected leader in Australian sport. After serving in key roles across multiple Australian Commonwealth Games teams, in 2019 she became the first woman appointed to the Chef de Mission role, successfully leading Australia to the top of the medal tally at Birmingham 2022 and Glasgow 2026 editions of the Commonwealth Games. Alongside these leadership roles, she has built an impressive career in sport administration and currently serves as Assistant Director of Sport Partnerships at Sport Integrity Australia.
Achievements
- 1996: Australian Institute of Sport Swimming Hall of Fame inductee
- 2000: Australian Sports Medal
- 2001, 2002 & 2004: Australian Institute of Sport Athlete of the Year
- 2001: NSW Young Australian of the Year – Sport Category winner, NSW Young Australian of the Year overall winner, Young Australian of the Year – Sport Category winner
- 2001: Centenary Medal of Australia
- 2004: Sport Australia Hall of Fame ‘Sir Donald Bradman Award’
- 2004: Confederation of Australian Sport ‘Dawn Fraser Award’
- 2005 Order of Australia Medal (OAM) for services to sport at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games
- 2006 Australian Institute of Sport ‘Best of the Best’
- 2007 Sport Australia Hall of Fame inductee
- 2008 ACT Sport Hall of Fame inductee
- 2010 International Swimming Hall of Fame inductee
- 2015 University of Canberra Distinguished Alumni Award
- 2022 Australian Sports Performance Awards Leadership Award for outstanding demonstration of leadership.
- 2022 University of Canberra Sport Walk of Fame inductee
- 2023 Life Membership of Commonwealth Games Australia
- 2026: Appointed to the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Board