Mike Sharrock has been appointed as CEO of the British Paralympic Association (BPA), succeeding Tim Hollingsworth, who was named Sport England CEO earlier this year.

Sharrock joins the BPA following a long career in the oil industry. He spent 30 years at BP, where he held roles such as oil director, Vietnam; retail director, Netherlands; and managing director, Benelux.

During his time at BP, he was involved in sport sponsorship initiatives and led the company's tier 1 partnership with the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.

Since leaving BP in 2015, Sharrock has been working as an executive coach with institutions and businesses – including the International Paralympic Committee.

“I was fortunate to witness the amazing success of ParalympicsGB at London 2012 and more recently at Rio 2016 and at this year’s PyeongChang Games," said Sharrock, who will take up the role in January 2019.

"Through their incredible sporting success, our Paralympic athletes have challenged perceptions and inspired a genuine change in attitudes towards disability. There is still much more to do and I look forward to working with the team to achieve further success in the coming years.”

Nick Webborn, BPA chair, added: "Mike was the outstanding candidate of a very strong shortlist and we are delighted to welcome him to the BPA.

"Mike’s passion for the Paralympic movement is clear through his London 2012 role with BP and more recently with the International Paralympic Committee.

"He is known for his leadership as well as his people development skills. Along with his strong commercial background and passion for social change it will make Mike an impressive leader of the BPA. He will build on the sound platform that Tim Hollingsworth has left and take the BPA to the next phase of its journey.”