AFF Board Update
The Australian Fencing Federation (AFF) is very pleased to announce the election of Mr. Davide Wheeler as the new President of the AFF following the recent AGM. With over 10 years of dedicated involvement in the Australian fencing community, Davide has made significant contributions across all levels of the fencing in Australia. He has excelled as a fencer, representing his club, state, and national teams and has served as a volunteer at local, state and the national levels. Davide’s, experience as a coach and an official has provided him with a comprehensive understanding of all the technical aspects the sport of fencing including competitions, training, refereeing and coaching.
Since joining the board, Davide has applied his significant experience in project management, human resources, change management and stakeholder engagement towards supporting the AFF and its member states in continuing to strengthen and build the sport of fencing in Australia. As the newly elected President, Davide looks forward to working collaboratively with the AFF board and member states, volunteers, athletes, coaches and referees to propel Australian Fencing towards the Brisbane 2032 Olympics.
We are also pleased to announce the appointment of Paul Glasson as the Vice President of the AFF. Paul’s extensive experience in driving positive outcomes for the sport of fencing, his love of fencing together with his commercial expertise, has been invaluable in creating new opportunities for fencers of all ages. In his time on the board, Paul invested his time in building the Australian Youth Circuit. He has also forged relationships with national sporting bodies to build their awareness of fencing thereby successfully secured significant funding from them for the AFF athlete performance programs. Over the past two years, Paul has also dedicated himself to establishing the National Squad and, together with the National Coaching Team, has played a pivotal role in driving significant growth in the AFF’s High Performance Program. In addition to his role as Vice President, Paul will continue to serve as the Chair of the High Performance Commission, ensuring continuity and continued success.
We extend a warm welcome to Sam Auty who joins the AFF Board as a new member. Sam boasts an impressive history in Australian Fencing, including six National Women’s Sabre Championship titles, national team representation, coaching experience, and qualifications as an FIE referee. With a professional background as an established lawyer, Sam’s experience in governance and her past experience serving on the board of fencing Victoria, Sam’s expertise and contributions will undoubtedly be invaluable as the federation progresses.
We are delighted to have Kaye Mahoney re-join the Board for another four years. Since joining the board last year, Kaye has applied her legal, governance and probity experience to supporting the AFF in the areas of finance audit and risk, procurement of services, policy development, member protection and engagement with member states. Her love of fencing and her unwavering support and commitment to Australian fencing have been exemplary. Kaye’s continued service on the board will serve as a valuable asset for the entire Australian fencing community.
Ned Fitzgerald will continue as the Chair of the Athlete’s Commission while also joining the High Performance Commission. The AFF values the athlete’s perspective of such a seasoned and talented athlete as Ned and look forward to benefitting from Ned’s experience in IT, data analytics and software engineering.
Garry Webster and Angela Bensted continue to bring their much appreciated and long-standing experience and historical knowledge of AFF operations and initiatives to the board. With their experience the AFF is well poised to continue to develop and pursue its strategic goals.
Finally, we would like to express our thanks to our outgoing president, Vince Elias for his contributions over the past eight years to fencing in Australia as part of the board. Vince’s service and involvement with the federation at a national level started a few years prior to his joining the board in 2015. He took on the role of President of the AFF in 2019 and faced the challenges of Covid-19. We wish him the best in all his future endeavours.