Dumfries sportswoman Sue Strachan has resigned from her role as interim chairperson of Cricket Scotland.
The former president, along with the entire board of the governing body, resigned on Sunday the day before the publication of a report into racism in the sport.
A letter from the board sent to interim chief executive officer, Gordon Arthur, said: “We are writing to formally submit our resignations from the board of Cricket Scotland.
“We are all truly sorry and have apologised publicly to everyone who has experienced racism, or any other form of discrimination, in cricket in Scotland.”
The investigation was commissioned by sportscotland last year following allegations made by players of racism and discrimination in the sport.
The independent review, carried out by equality and diversity group Plan4Sport, found 448 examples that demonstrated institutional racism. They said there was a lack of diversity, anti-racist training and no mechanism for handling racist incidents.
Cricket Scotland has now been placed in special measures, with sportscotland effectively taking control until October 2023.
A new, more diverse board must be in place by September and consist of a “minimum of 40 per cent men and 40 per cent women, ensuring a minimum of 25 per cent of the total board makeup come from of black, south-east Asian, or other mixed or multiple ethnic groups”.
The former board believed it was for the best that they resign immediately to allow those changes to take place.
The letter continued: “When the review into racism in Scottish cricket was announced last year we were fully supportive of the review.
“It has achieved an unparalleled level of engagement and we believe it will be truly transformative, not just for Cricket Scotland and the sport of cricket, but it will provide a watershed moment for Scottish sport and society in general.
“However, while the board has not been given sight of the review report, it is now aware of the proposed timescales and of certain mandated actions proposed within the report that it believes make the delivery of these two programmes unachievable within the timetable proposed and the current governance framework.
“Consequently, we believe we must now step aside to enable the required progress to be made in the coming months.”
Renal physician Strachan, who plays for Dumfries Cricket Club, was appointed as the first female president in 2020 and in April this year was named interim chairperson.
At the time she said: “Everyone deserves to find a welcome within our cricketing community and our love of cricket can bring us together stronger in our diversity to address any challenges we face in the future.
“That is of course important as we embrace the ongoing review into racism within our sport.
Lawyer Aamer Anwar, who is representing cricketers Majid Haq and Qasim Sheikh, whose allegations prompted the review, tweeted that his clients welcomed the resignations from the board.
