Sarah Clarke

Clarke succeeded Lieutenant General David Leakey, who retired in February 2018, as Black Rod. Speaking to The Guardian, Clarke said:

Prior to working for Wimbledon, Clarkes first job was working as a tennis tournament organiser for Brian Hewitt Associates in Durham after which she worked on four Olympic Games, including the 2012 Olympic Games in London, the London Marathon, and UK Sport.

Clarke was employed by The Championships, Wimbledon, as Championships director, and first worked at Wimbledon as a school-leaver in 1986. Interviewed by The Daily Telegraph in 2017, she commented on their quest for perfection, "We live for details. We love details".

Sarah Clarke OBE (born 12 October 1965) is a British administrator. Since 13 February 2018, she has served as Black Rod, the first female Black Rod in the 650-year history of the role. The role is formally "The Lady Usher of the Black Rod" (for previous incumbents "Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod"). Before taking this role, she was in charge of the administration of The Championships, Wimbledon.

Clarke was born on 12 October 1965 in Wolverhampton, Staffordshire, England. She was educated at Wolverhampton Girls' High School, a grammar school in the town. She studied at the Roehampton Institute of Higher Education, graduating with a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree in 1988: as the institute could not award its own degree, her BSc was validated by the University of Surrey. She obtained a certificate from the Institute of Marketing in 1993 and a Master of Science (MSc) degree from the University of Leicester in 2005.