CEO MONTHLY / FEMALE CEO OF THE YEAR AWARDS 2025 9 Best Sports Governance CEO 2025 (Australia): Dinah Glykidis Based in Canberra, Boxing Australia is the national federation for amateur boxing, recognised as the National Sporting Organisation for Boxing by the Australian Sports Commission, Australian Olympic Committee, Commonwealth Games Australia, and World Boxing. Committed to growing the sport and ensuring Australian boxers are recognised among the best in the world, the organisation serves a wide range of clients, including its member associations, boxers, coaches, officials, volunteers, and spectators. Boxing Australia is headed by CEO Dinah Glykidis, who has served the organisation for more than four years. Before joining Boxing Australia, Dinah was the Competition Executive at Queensland Rugby League for seven years, and the Accounts and Membership Officer for Swimming Queensland for six years before that. These roles were instrumental in enabling Dinah to navigate the Olympic, Commonwealth, and World Championships landscapes, elevating her ability to lead in a professional sports setting. Today, Dinah’s responsibilities as CEO comprise the overall strategic, operational, financial, and commercial aspects of leading Boxing Australia. Her role also involves working with key stakeholders both domestically within Australia and overseas with the International Federation of World Boxing and other national federations across the globe. Dinah strives to work hands-on in all areas of the organisation, including the recently added High Performance Program, aimed at providing sustained achievement on the global stage. Across her extensive career, Dinah cites her current position at Boxing Australia as one of her biggest achievements. “Given it is such a male-dominated sport, that was a proud moment because it validated my skills and effort,” she told us. “But what I value most are the changes I’ve made since taking on the role: improving efficiency and seeing more females enter boxing as athletes, coaches, and officials. That’s what truly feels like the achievement.” When Dinah first entered the sporting industry 18 years ago, few women held roles at state or national level. Since then, she has witnessed a strong push for change; for example, fewer than five CEOs attended national meetings when she began at Boxing Australia, but that number has since grown. This evolution was underscored when Dinah was elected as one of the Vice Presidents of World Boxing, becoming the first woman to hold the seat and lead change across the organisation. Of course, there are and will always be challenges in such roles. “I’ve experienced so many as a woman,” Dinah shared. “From ‘What does she know?’, ‘She didn’t compete in this sport,’ or ‘She shouldn’t be in this position,’ to being yelled at, dismissed as ‘too young to last long,’ and ignored entirely. How I overcame this was to basically ignore them; I know my worth, value, and know what I’m doing in leading change to ensure we succeed together.” To enable the continued empowerment of women within sports, Boxing Australia has implemented a womenonly camp in Canberra. This camp is targeted towards developing athletes, coaches, and officials, providing them with a supportive environment to build skills and confidence. In addition, the organisation has introduced female-only “come and try” days, designed to encourage women of all skill levels to experience boxing – whether as athletes, volunteers, or officials – to reinforce that there is a place for women in every aspect of the sport. These endeavours align perfectly with Dinah’s hopes to leave a lasting, positive impact on the sport of boxing, and the people operating within it. Over the next few years, she aims to continue developing as a leader, whilst learning from others who are and have been leaders in top organisations. Through this development, Dinah intends to contribute towards an environment where athletes are centred, and the next generation of boxing is set up for the future – a mission worthy of her recognition as Australia’s Best Sports Governance CEO 2025. “Ultimately, I want my time as CEO to help set up Boxing Australia for long-term success,” she concluded. “The future is looking strong. We have a lot of up-and-coming athletes who are going places; they are strong and resilient, and I cannot wait to see them achieve their dreams on the national and international stage.” Contact: Dinah Glykidis Company: Boxing Australia Limited Web Address: www.boxing.org.au AIS-Oct25143 In a landscape long dominated by men, women are increasingly breaking down barriers and stepping into sporting leadership roles. At the forefront of this shift is the inspirational Dinah Glykidis, CEO of Boxing Australia, whose journey reflects both the challenges and the opportunities facing female leaders in sport. We sat down with Dinah for more, as she is named in the Female CEO of the Year Awards 2025.
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