British Triathlon chief executive and former international distance runner Zara Hyde Peters has been named CEO of UK Athletics. 

Her appointment ends the 11-month search for a successor to Niels de Vos. Nigel Holl, who has been holding the reins, now moves on to work as executive performance director for British Curling.

Hyde Peters, who represented Great Britain during the 90s and competed for England at the 1994 Commonwealth Games, received an OBE for her services to triathlon and athletics in 2010. She also led British Triathlon as CEO from 2008-2014 overseeing Team GB's first ever Olympic triathlon medals in 2012. 

The 41-year-old said of her appointment: “I’m delighted to be returning to the sport I love and to do so as Chief Executive of UK Athletics is a massive honour. It is an exciting time for the sport. We have a huge opportunity to build on recent successes and I’m excited about being part of the team helping to realise that potential and cement our reputation as a leader in world athletics.”

Chair of UK Athletics, Chris Clark said: "We are thrilled Zara has accepted the offer to be UKA's next CEO.

"Our sport has a fantastic heritage and a bright future with Doha and Dubai 2019 and Tokyo 2020 we have some exciting events to look forward to. The board and executive team recognise there is much work to do."

Hyde Peters previously worked for UK Athletics from 2000 to 2008 and currently sits on the organising committee for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. These two roles stand her in good stead for the position as CEO ahead of an important year leading up to the Olympics.