Our people

Meet the Weatherbys Board of Directors.

Martin Radvan

Company Chairman

Martin was formerly Deputy Group CEO of Mars Inc. and President of Mars Wrigley, responsible for all the Mars chocolate, confectionery and chewing gum brands around the world. He was a senior executive for Mars Incorporated for over 30 years, in a variety of roles and locations, and brings very strong family business and governance experience, combined with both large and smaller business acumen, having run various business units across Mars.

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Russell Ferris

CEO Weatherbys Ltd

Russell joined Weatherbys in 2016 from his position as Director, Ireland for the Sky Sports Racing channel At The Races. Russell has 20+ years senior management & directorial experience, including 5 ½ years as Managing Director of Limerick Racecourse and was appointed CEO of Weatherbys in 2019. In additional to the Executive Director roles within the Weatherbys Group, Russell also sits as Non-Executive Director on the Boards of Racing Digital and Venture Bio.

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Nick Craven

Executive Director

Nick joined the business in 1993 and was formerly Commercial Director. He joined Weatherbys from Equine Group South Africa - a business responsible for Bloodstock Insurance and Financial Management. Nick is also a Director of the Point-to-Point Racing Company and Weatherbys Hamilton.

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Stuart Slade

Chief Financial Officer

Stuart joined Weatherbys in 2013, becoming Chief Financial Officer in 2015. He heads our Financial Services pillar which encompasses both the Finance and Human Resources teams. Prior to Weatherbys, Stuart was Finance Director for regional newspaper companies and has over 30 years' experience in financial & management roles.

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Sir Johnny Weatherby KCVO

Non-Executive Director

Johnny joined Weatherbys in 1979 and was seconded to the Jockey Club as a Director from 1990 - 1992. He returned to Weatherbys as Chairman from 1993 - 2022 and was Chairman of Weatherbys Bank from its start in 1994 until 2017. He remains a Non-Executive Director of both companies. Johnny was involved with Ascot Racecourse for over twenty years – first as a Trustee and later as Chairman. He was also Her Majesty’s Representative at Ascot from 2011 to 2020. He is a Member of the Jockey Club and an established racehorse owner and breeder.

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Roger Weatherby

Non-Executive Director

Roger joined Weatherbys as a non-executive Director in 1993. He joined the group board as an Executive Director in 1998 and became Chief Executive of Weatherbys Bank in 2000. Prior to joining Weatherbys, he worked for Cazenove & Co. He is also Chairman of Weatherbys Hamilton, the private client insurance partnership, and was Chairman of Arkle Finance, the asset finance subsidiary of Weatherbys Bank, until 2018. Roger held the post of Senior Steward of The Jockey Club from 2014-2019.

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Ian Penrose

Non-Executive Director

Ian was appointed as Vice Chairman of Weatherbys on 1 January 2024, having been a non-executive director since January 2021. Ian is also the Senior Independent Director of Playtech plc, the FTSE 250 listed business, a non-executive director of the ASX listed IXUP Limited specialising in data encryption and Regulatory technology , and a non-executive director of Phenix Real Time Solutions Inc, the Chicago based streaming technology business. He was formerly the Chairman of the National Football Museum, and for nearly 20 years, the Chief Executive Officer of Sportech plc and Arena Leisure plc.

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John O’Reilly

Non-Executive Director

John has been a Non-Executive Director of Weatherbys for several years. He is currently CEO of the Rank Group Plc and has more than 30 years’ experience in the betting and gaming sector. He was formerly a non-executive director of William Hill plc and, between 2011 and 2015, Managing Director of Coral's digital business. Prior to joining Gala Coral, John was an executive director on the board of Ladbrokes Plc. He has served as a non-executive director of Telecity Group Plc and Chair of the digital design and development business Grand Parade Ltd. He currently serves as a trustee of the New Bridge Foundation.

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Sharon O’Regan

Executive Director

Sharon was appointed General Manager of Weatherbys Ireland in 2019, having held senior management and project development roles within Weatherbys. Sharon has significant experience working with our stud book partners and has over 20 years of breeding and racing administration experience. She leads our Digital Solutions operation – delivering racing systems worldwide. Sharon is a director of Weatherbys Ireland and is Deputy CEO.

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