Former England captain Clare Connor is set to become the first female president of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) in its 233-year history. The announcement was made after the annual general meeting on Wednesday, 24 June via videoconferencing.
Clare Connor will take charge from October 1 next years as due to pandemic current MCC president Kumar Sangakkara tenure has been extended for another 12 months.
The former England all-rounder, Clare Connor is currently the managing director of women’s cricket of England and Wales Cricket Board. The former England skipper has played 111 international matches, scoring 1604 runs and taking 104 wickets. She was named the captain of her side in 2000 and held the position until she retired from international cricket in 2006. She also led her side to a historic Ashes win in 2005.
After the announcement, Clare Connor said, “I am deeply honoured to be named the next president of MCC. Cricket has enriched my life so deeply already, and now it hands me this wonderful privilege.”
“We often need to look back to see how far we’ve come. I made my first visit to Lord’s as a starry-eyed, cricket-obsessed nine-year-old girl at a time when women were not welcome in the Long Room. Times have changed. Now I find myself entrusted with this remarkable opportunity, the opportunity to play a part in helping MCC, cricket’s most influential club, to thrive and grow in an even more modern and inclusive future,” she added.
“MCC does wonderful work for communities in the UK and overseas. It stages the most uplifting events. It brings people together. And as we take small steps to emerge from this uncertain and difficult time, we are going to need the power of sport and strong sporting organisations like the MCC more than ever. I am very proud to have been asked to be its next president,” she concluded.