Who we are

John leads the Board as Chairman, taking over the role in May 2018.

John studied at Cambridge University where he rowed for CUBC reserve boat in 1982 and 1983. Then during the Boat Race in 1984, his crew famously sank before the start because they hit a barge during the warm up.

He moved to Putney and joined London Rowing Club, rowing there for five years. John became Vice-Captain in 1992 and led the team as Captain in 1993 before getting married.

Jim Downing founded LYR in 2004 and is now President of LYR.

Jim also serves as a Non-Executive Chairman for Native Land Ltd while participating as a Non-Executive Director and adviser to a number of other companies including Andrew Martin Ltd, Cydar Ltd and Essex Group Asia Pacific Ltd. Until July 2016 he was Non-Executive Director and Acting Chairman of Winsway Enterprises.

From 2001-2003, he was Deputy Head of JP Morgan Chase & Co's European Investment Banking group. Prior to the merger of JP Morgan & Co. with Chase Manhattan Bank in 2000, he worked as their Co-Head European Investment Banking.

Jim obtained an MBA from Yale in 1982 and a BSc. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1976.

Krystyna is Managing Director of Board Practice at Norman Broadbent PLC. She joined the company in 2011 and focuses on Board appointments across all sectors. She has a wealth of board search experience in listed and private companies ranging from small, medium and FTSE 250 and FTSE 100 corporates.

As well as being a Trustee of LYR, she is Non-Executive Director of Aberdeen Asian Income Fund Ltd.

She studied physics at Oxford University and gained a law degree in 2003.

Akash is a Corporate Banking Analyst at Citi in the Global Subsidiary Group in London.

He is an avid sailor, sailing regularly off the English and Irish coast.

Akash holds a Bachelors degree in Biomedical Sciences from Kings College London and rowed for his university team. Originally from Mauritius, he enjoys spending time snorkelling and being on the water.

Alan is the Director of the renamed London Stadium in Stratford. He has overseen the re-opening of the venue following its transformation as the former Olympic Stadium built to host London 2012. Since then, the venue has hosted the 2015 Rugby World Cup, premier league football and even motor racing. It will host Usain Bolt's final Athletics World Championship appearance this summer.

Before joining the Stadium, Alan worked for the London Borough of Newham with remit for maximising the community opportunities from London's staging of the London 2012 games.

Prior to that, he worked for Sport England in various roles including distributing community lottery grants and managing the development of elite sport facilities. He was the lead for the Caversham Lakes rowing facility.

Outside work, Alan is a keen footballer and runner. He describes himself as an enthusiastic beginner at rowing.

Avril moved to London, from Canada in 2003 to complete an MSc from Imperial College. It was meant to be a one year stay, but she fell in love with the city and failed to return home.  She’s spent the last 18 years working in finance, focussed on complex international energy issues, most recently decarbonization / energy transition. 

She started sculling in 1995, as a junior, at the Calgary Rowing Club and been on the water ever since.  The Thames (and her single scull) has become one ofher favourite places to be for a quiet break from London’s chaos.  She lives in Putney with her husband and two young children. 

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Dr. Ian Pickup is Chief Operating Officer at the University of East London, where he is responsible for the leadership, development and effective delivery of all student-facing professional services. Prior to this, Ian was Deputy COO at SOAS University of London, Head of the Student Experience at University College Cork, Ireland, and was Director of Student Affairs and Director of Sport and Wellbeing at the University of Roehampton.

He holds a PhD in Education from the University of Roehampton, where he also worked as a Principal Lecturer, becoming a National Teaching Fellow of the Higher Education Academy in 2007. Ian contributed to a range of national and international initiatives, including being the UK partner in an EU project relating to early years teacher education, and the training of NGO staff in the use of sport as a tool for social development in post disaster contexts. A teacher and coach, Ian has authored key texts to support initial teacher education in physical education and remains a passionate advocate for the educational benefits of sport and physical activity. Ian was among the first wave of professional rugby players with the Harlequins Rugby Club in the mid-1990s and maintains an active interest in a range of sports today.

Iain is an independent consultant providing expertise to organisations seeking to identify, evaluate and deliver a meaningful legacy from major events. 

He was a member of the bid team that secured the Olympic and Paralympic Games for London and subsequently led work relating to the legacy of the 2012 Games, including 10 years leading the Major Events team at the Mayor of London’s agency responsible for international promotion and economic development, London & Partners. He is also a founding director, and now Honorary Member of, the International Association of Event Hosts and has an MBA degree from Cambridge University.

Iain's passion for sport often involves participating in physical challenges. This includes the London Marathon, RideLondon and rowing. He learnt to row at the University of Salford, has won an event at Henley Royal Regatta while at Cambridge University and has coached Loughborough Students Rowing Club.

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John started his career as a journalist, working in regional newspapers before becoming Editorial Director of Teletext on ITV and Channel 4, the national interactive TV service, for 10 years. He is now a leader in the Corporate Responsibility field, leading CR for Tideway, the company building London's "super-sewer" underneath the River Thames. He has significant experience in community partnerships and in companies delivering social value.

John's sporting passion is cricket - he is still playing, just, and he has discovered the challenges and joys of rowing through Tideway's Oarsome Challenge charity marathons along the Thames.

Karen Morris has over 25 years' experience in sponsorship, both in media (at Classic FM as Head of Sponsorship), WPP and brandmeetsbrand, which she founded in 2003, as well as later taking over Sponsorship Consulting to expand further into European sponsorship.

Karen has a wealth of experience in sponsorship strategy and acquisition across all sectors including arts, entertainment, charity, not for profit, media and sport.

Marianna, originally from Poland, graduated in law and focussed her studies on the phenomenon of doping in law. Since moving to the UK, she has been an advisor on sports governance. She is a member of the Inclusion Advisory Group of the Middlesex FA and a former Non-Executive Director of the British Kickboxing Council. 

Marianna is passionate about how sport and physical activity can break down social barriers and increase participation in sports, especially among young people regardless of their background or physical abilities. Marianna is a Funding Manager focusing on Children and Young People at the London Marathon Charitable Trust. She manages grants supporting ambitious projects across the UK that will challenge inequality of access to physical activity and reflect the spirit of the London Marathon.

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Nick is a high performance coach with the GB Paralympic squad, and part of the highly successful coaching team that oversaw all four Paralympic boats winning medals at the Rio games and Tokyo 2020.

He found direction through rowing at a state school and after representing GB as a junior went on to attain a degree in Biology from Oxford Brookes University. After moving on from competing himself he built a career in coaching at the National High Performance centre.

With 18 years of involvement in rowing and witnessing first hand its power to positively shape lives he wants to help ensure the opportunities the sport offers are available to people from all walks of life.

Sarah is a chartered civil engineer with over twenty years' experience in project management working primarily in the construction and maritime sectors.

Sarah graduated from Bradford University in 1997 having spent time as a postgraduate researcher in Japan for a civil engineering firm and went on to work in private consultancy and for the Environment Agency.

She spent ten years between Cumbria, Lancashire and the Thames Barrier working in flood risk management before moving to the Port of London Authority (PLA).

Most recently Sarah was the PLA's Asset Strategy Manager and during her time there developed a love of rowing, primarily in the PLA's traditional cutters. Sarah has recently become director of Hawkshill Consulting Limited, a multidisciplinary consultancy offering project management and organisational change management services.

Sophie Hosking MBE, joined LYR's Board in May 2018. Sophie is a retired rower, having won a Gold medal for Great Britain in the Lightweight Double Scull at the London 2012 Olympic Games.

In the 2013 New Year's Honours, Sophie was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire for services to rowing.

Sophie originally studied for her undergraduate degree in chemistry and physics at Durham University, but has since qualified as a Solicitor. She continues to be a member of London Rowing Club, where she served as the first female Captain from 2014 to 2016.

Umer Mansoor is the entrepreneurial founder and CEO of Construction Helpline. Umer provides dynamic leadership and believes in streamlining card acquisition and training in construction, using inventive technology-based applications and well-thought-out processes. Umer has been the driving force behind Construction Helpline and is looking toward shaping the construction industry further by accelerating digitalisation in training. Umer understands the disadvantages tradespeople — site workers, project managers and architects — face. That’s why Umer is using his platform to promote effective change for a stronger, efficient construction workforce.