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Drug Free Sport New Zealand (DFSNZ) has announced the appointment of Nick Paterson as its new Chief Executive, effective from 31st July, replacing long-standing Chief Executive Graeme Steel.

Following an extensive search, which considered candidates from New Zealand and overseas, DFSNZ Board Chair Justice Warwick Gendall explained that Paterson (pictured below) stood out from a number of strong applicants.

Justice Gendall says the high calibre of applicants made for a very difficult decision, advising "Nick won the role due to his vast experience in both integrity and regulatory environments. Together with his investigative skills we believe Nick’s expertise will add to our strengths and existing agency expertise across the anti-doping sector.”

Before joining DFSNZ, he was General Manager, Investigations at the Serious Fraud Office and has been on secondment as the Executive Director of the Gambling Commission since October 2016. Prior to that Mr Paterson was Executive Director/NZ Lead, Fraud Investigation and Dispute Services at Ernst & Young.

The timing of Paterson’s appointment means that he will be able to guide the organisation through a season of change.

Justice Gendall added “DFSNZ is focusing on a range of ‘Good Clean Sport’ initiatives including regulatory, education and investigative strategies to ensure closer collaboration with stakeholders across New Zealand’s sporting community. We have full confidence that Nick has what it takes to do an excellent job.

“Governing legislation demands that we must first and foremost be a very efficient regulator and our athlete and supporting group education will have high priority.

“Nick has also represented New Zealand’s interests on the world stage, leading the successful NZ delegation to the OECD Working Group on Bribery in Paris and represented NZ at APEC, so his international credentials stack up as well. We are confident Nick is the right person to lead DFSNZ and represent our interests both here at home and overseas.”

Commenting on his new role, Paterson added “sport enriches the lives of so many New Zealanders, and I’m passionate about working with the expert team at DFSNZ and the wider sporting community to ensure greater awareness about anti-doping and clean sport.

“Graeme Steel has done an outstanding job leading the organisation to where it is today. I’m humbled to be given the opportunity to step into his shoes and continue on from here.

“Doping is a serious challenge facing sport. I’m looking forward to building relationships with key stakeholders to ensure the integrity of sport and the protection of our clean athletes.”

Nick Paterson image courtesy of LinkedIn.

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