England Boxing has announced the appointment of Lawrence Selby as a new non-executive board director ©England Boxing

England Boxing has announced the appointment of barrister Lawrence Selby as a new non-executive Board director following Margaret Byrne's resignation in March.

Selby was appointed following a recruitment process and is the fourth non-executive director on England Boxing’s 12-person Board.

Byrne resigned in March after also stepping down as the chief executive of Sunderland Football Club following the English Premier League team's handling of a child abuse case involving one of its now former players.

The club was criticised for letting England winger Adam Johnson play following his arrest in March 2015 on suspicion of sexual activity with a 15-year-old.

Johnson denies wrongdoing but was jailed for six years in March of this year.

Selby specialises in criminal law and will chair England Boxing’s Legal, Compliance and HR Sub-Committee.

The 46-year-old has nearly 20 years experience as a barrister and works at the chambers of Stephen Kay QC in London, where he defends cases of homicide, fraud and significant drug offences.

He also works on regulatory cases and has advised on a range of sports based issues, including the role of governing bodies in drafting rules, regulations and policies. 

Lawrence Selby replaces Margaret Byrne, who stepped down from the Board earlier this year ©AFC Sunderland
Lawrence Selby replaces Margaret Byrne, who stepped down from the Board earlier this year ©AFC Sunderland

"Lawrence was the outstanding candidate and brings a great deal of personal and professional qualities to England Boxing," said Caspar Hobbs, chairman of England Boxing.

"He will enhance the capabilities, skills and connections of the Board in a very important area.

"Lawrence joins a superb roster of non-executives on our Board, who are all widely respected in their particular fields.

"Together with our boxing board directors, I am confident they will make a significant contribution to the future success of England Boxing and the growth of the sport in this country."

The Board of England Boxing is made-up of an independent chairman, four non-executive directors and seven boxing directors, appointed for their knowledge and expertise of the sport.

England Boxing is responsible for the "Whole Sport Plan" for boxing between 2013 and next year, and receives £5 million ($6.2 million/€5.5 million) of funding from Sport England to "grow and sustain participation and create opportunities and pathways for the most talented boxers to progress to the elite level".

At the elite level, English boxers won all three of Britain's boxing medals at this year's Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, while at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, England came top of the boxing medal table with five golds, one silver and one bronze.