With the resignation of Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) Chief Executive Officer, Fiona De Jong, last October, a global search has been underway to find her replacement. Of more than 322 potential candidates involved in the consideration process, current Sailing Australia Chief Matt Carroll has been announced as the new AOC CEO.

Set to take over the reins in May, Carroll comes to the Olympic Committee with diverse experience across multiple sports. His previous roles include high-ranking posts in football and rugby, the latter of which he served as General Manager for the 2003 Rugby World Cup hosted by Australia. He was once Deputy CEO of the Australian Rugby Union as part of his 25 years of sport administration experience.

Per the AOC, Carroll’s previous experience in Japan as part of its rugby organization will be of particular benefit, as the 2018 Olympic Winter Games are in PyeongChang, South Korea, the 2020 Olympic Games are in Tokyo, Japan and the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing, China.

Among his first orders of business, Carroll says he is committed to strengthening ties between the Olympic body and national sporting federations.

“Working with all the (Olympic) sports, not telling them how to run themselves, that is their business,” Carroll told the press this week.

“But I think collectively we can work together a bit stronger, better, to face those challenges from the big professional sports. I said that to the committee on the interview – I see this is an opportunity for the AOC to show good leadership. It’s not telling sports how to run things, but how can we do things collectively.”

The role of CEO is appointed by the AOC Executive and is a voting ex-officio member.