Sally Bolton will leave her post as Chief Executive of the Wimbledon Tennis Championship at the end of this year’s tournament.
All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, which stages the grass-court major, issued a statement on Monday morning confirming the upcoming departure of Bolton. The 51-year-old took over from Richard Lewis in 2019 to become the first woman to hold the position. Prior to the appointment, Bolton was the AELTC’s strategic planning and operations director.
During her time as Wimbledon chief, Bolton has overseen various significant milestones in Wimbledon’s history, including its cancellation in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic and its return the following year. There was also the decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players in 2022 due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the increased use of technology at the event and removing the tradition of having no play on the second Sunday.
“It has been a great honour and privilege to serve as Chief Executive of the All England Club and to work alongside such a dedicated Board and group of colleagues, partners and the wider tennis community,” Bolton said in a statement issued via the AELTC.
“I am proud of what we have achieved together – particularly bringing The Championships back following the pandemic and in shaping a clear path for the future. The All England Club is a very special institution, and I look forward to seeing it continue to flourish in the years ahead.”
No information has been issued about the reason for Bolton’s departure and what she will do next. Until a permanent replacement is found, Financial Director Richard Atkinson will act as an interim CEO. Bolton will help in the transition of her role.
“Sally has made a very important contribution to the success of the All England Club and The Championships for over a decade and particularly as Chief Executive for the past six years,” said AELTC chair Deborah Jevans.
“I’d like to thank Sally for her hard work and dedication over that time and commend her for guiding the organisation through a period of significant change.”
This year’s Wimbledon championships will start on June 26th. For the first time, video review technology will be used to give players the chance to challenge certain calls made. They will be in use on the tournament’s two stadium courts, as well as for singles matches on four show courts. Such technology is already used at both the Australian Open and the US Open.
