Photo: British Swimming

Liam Tancock is one of four new athletes to be appointed to the UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) Athlete Commission.

Former World and Commonwealth champion Tancock has been selected for the role alongside Olympic skeleton medallist Laura Deas, multiple British weightlifting champion Jo Calvino and former Gloucester Rugby player James Hudson.

The 50m backstroke world record holder retired from swimming in 2016, but he’ll now be one of 11 Commission members seeking to strengthen athletes’ voices within anti-doping procedures.

UKAD Athlete Commission chair, Sarah Winckless MBE, said: “We were extremely impressed with the number of high calibre candidates who applied for a position on the Athlete Commission, the level of anti-doping knowledge they held and the level of thinking they had done around the subject.

“Their personal commitment to clean sport was great to see. From this, it’s clear that anti-doping continues to be extremely high on the agenda of elite athletes.

“James, Jo, Laura and Liam were successfully appointed onto the Commission because of their diverse experiences as top-level athletes, and their passion for anti-doping.

“I think all four of them will bring their own networks and ideas to the Commission and I look forward to working with them.”

The UKAD Athlete Commission advises and supports UKAD’s objectives, while working with other athlete-centred groups to ensure athletes’ views are represented.

Tancock and his fellow Commission members have been selected based on their commitment to anti-doping and their experience of competing at a national or international level.

During his swimming career, Tancock won gold medals at three different Commonwealth Games between 2006 and 2014. He was also a three-time 50m backstroke world champion, and represented Great Britain in the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games.