British Cycling appoints former Rugby League World Cup head Jon Dutton as new CEO
Dutton will replace acting CEO Danielle Every, who replaced former head Brian Facer in October


The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Thank you for signing up to The Pick. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
British Cycling has announced Jon Dutton as its new CEO, a former head of the Rugby League World Cup. Dutton will become the third person in charge at BC in seven months, after Danielle Every's short tenure as acting CEO followed the departure of the previous boss Brian Facer, who left following a tumultuous year for British Cycling, having spent less than two years in the job.
He will begin in the role, overseeing the national governing body, across BMX, cyclocross, cycle speedway, mountain biking, road and track, later this month.
Prior to his role at the Rugby League World Cup, which took place in England last year, he was Director of Projects and People for the Rugby Football League, through which he led the successful bid for the tournament.
Previously, Dutton was director of readiness for the 2014 Tour de France Grand Depart in Yorkshire, in addition to experience working for major organisations including the PGA European Tour and UEFA. He is also a board member of the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships in Glasgow and across Scotland.
Every was acting CEO from October after Facer's departure, but announced in December that she would be leaving to take up a position as chief operating officer at PGMOL – the organisation overseeing professional football referees and match officials in England
BC was at the heart of three separate controversies this year, beginning with its decision to block trans athletes from competing back in April, pending a full review.
It then came under fire in September after suggesting that its members should not ride their bikes on the day of the Queen's funeral. After widespread criticism from members on social media who questioned its decision to dictate their leisure riding choices, BC was forced to back down and retract that guidance, but it had left a bad taste.
There was then the announcement of an eight-year sponsorship deal with oil and gas giant Shell. For many, this was a controversial move for the cycling body and it came in for severe criticism from many directions. The deal was branded as sportswashing, and unethical; even politicians weighed in, with the Green Party saying that BC had "seriously let down its members".
There are many things in Dutton's in-tray, including boosting BC's finances and membership numbers, solving its image problem, sorting out elite racing, especially on the domestic scene, and fixing amateur racing.
In a press release on Thursday, Dutton said that there were "boundless opportunities for growth".
“It is a privilege to be appointed as Chief Executive of British Cycling, and I am very much looking forward to getting started in the role," he said. “I am very grateful to the British Cycling Board for putting their faith in me and while the current landscape for all sports is challenging, there are also boundless opportunities for growth.
“Over the short term I look forward to meeting many of the people that contribute to ensuring that British Cycling continues to nurture talent, positively impact communities, and harness the success of our country's best riders to grow the sport at every level."
Earlier this year, BC chair Frank Slevin told Cycling Weekly that BC had scrapped its ambitious target to increase its membership from around 150,000 to 250,000 by the Paris Olympics, as it weathers the effects of the cost of living crisis and the fallout from a year of controversies.
In an exclusive interview, he said the governing body will now prioritise other things, including the Glasgow World Championships this summer.
“I can put down 10 different reasons, including the economic and cost of living situation, why that membership number is not one we should aspire to. I’m realistic and I won’t pursue objectives which don’t have a foundation that’s credible,” Slevin said.
In the press release on Thursday, Slevin said: “I’m delighted to welcome Jon to the organisation at the end of what has been a really robust and competitive process to find the right candidate to lead our organisation forwards.
“The Board and I were hugely impressed by the breadth of Jon’s experience both within cycling and in the wider sport sector, alongside his ability to lead teams with purpose and drive them towards strategic and commercial success."
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!

Adam is Cycling Weekly’s senior news and feature writer – his greatest love is road racing but as long as he is cycling on tarmac, he's happy. Before joining Cycling Weekly he spent two years writing for Procycling, where he interviewed riders and wrote about racing, speaking to people as varied as Demi Vollering to Philippe Gilbert. Before cycling took over his professional life, he covered ecclesiastical matters at the world’s largest Anglican newspaper and politics at Business Insider. Don't ask how that is related to cycling.
-
-
Snapped cranks, motorbikes and decade-old handlebars - breaking sprinting's oldest world record
Jeffrey Hoogland is going after the longest-standing record in track cycling
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Best fenders - mudguards - for gravel bikes 2023: top models we recommend
Want to extend the life of your components and ride in greater comfort? We’ve rounded up the best fenders / mudguards to protect both you and your gravel bike
By Stefan Abram Published
-
British Cycling sets up task force to revive domestic racing scene
Governing body CEO promises "immediate progress" for struggling scene
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Why we will likely never know which rider Richard Freeman ordered doping products for
With no evidence and limited investigative powers, it seems unlikely any riders will ever be exposed
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Former British Cycling doctor Richard Freeman given four-year doping ban
Freeman chose not to defend himself before the anti-doping panel
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Changing of the guard: Meet the Great Britain track cycling coaches chasing gold medals
British Cycling replaced all four track head coaches last year. Here's how they're masterminding a path to Olympic titles
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Horror crash puts Great Britain men's team pursuit squad out of Worlds in qualifying
Charlie Tanfield's injuries meant he was unable to re-start the qualifying run
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Jumbo-Visma signs three young Brits for its development squad
Jed Smithson, Tomos Pattinson and Matthew Brennan have signed contracts with the Dutch team
By Tom Davidson Published
-
GB track sprint coach Kaarle McCulloch to step down, just 15 months after joining
British Cycling begins search for Australian's successor ahead of 2024 Paris Olympics
By Tom Davidson Published
-
British Cycling to cut back under-23 squad road programme, targets two events
National federation cites ‘incredibly challenging financial landscape’
By Tom Davidson Published