Sinclair (35), the chief executive of Otago University Rowing since 2002, was elected to the Rowing New Zealand board at the annual meeting in Invercargill last weekend.
The board has replaced the old New Zealand council and he is the first Otago administrator to be elected to rowing's top table since Neil Burrow 20 years ago.
He is one of the four elected members of the board along with John O'Connor (Southland), Luke van Velthoven (Marlborough) and Peter Twigg (Hawkes Bay). There are also four appointed members in former British international Joanna Perry, former cricket administrator Chris Doig, Bill Falconer and Gerry Dwyer.
Sinclair has been a key figure in Otago and University rowing this century and has done the groundwork to become a formidable administrator.
"It's been a few years coming," he said. "You have got to play the political game at times to get to this position."
He does not expect to make big changes in the sport.
"But I will add a more youthful point of view to discussions," Sinclair said. "It's an exciting time to be on the board with the world championships being held at Karapiro in six months."
Sinclair was a prominent rower with the Awarua and Waihopai clubs in Southland before joining the Otago University Club when he was a student at the Dunedin College of Education from 1993-97.
He won seven national premier lightweight titles, was a member of the New Zealand Under-23 team in 1996 and the New Zealand University team from 1995 to 2001.
It has been as a coach and administrator that Sinclair has made his biggest mark on the sport, however. He has been head coach of Otago University Rowing since 2003 and the Otago high performance squad from 2006 to 2008.
Sinclair has been a successful coach and an outstanding administrator. He has been president of New Zealand University Rowing since 1999 and manager of New Zealand University teams.
He has played a key role in integrating university rowing into the fold of New Zealand rowing.
One major coup was to persuade the Otago University Students' Association to fund the building of the aquatic centre when the University clubrooms were burnt down.
The centre has become the hub of student rowing in Dunedin since it was built in 2002 and was the catalyst that persuaded Rowing New Zealand to put a high performance centre in Dunedin.
A significant development came last year with a signed agreement between Rowing New Zealand and the University of Otago Council.
"It was the first official time that the university had supported sport," Sinclair said. "It was a huge leap forward. I hope it is the start to get a few more sports on board."
Sinclair pointed out that the prestigious universities of the world, such as Yale and Harvard in the United States and Oxford and Cambridge in England, supported traditional sports like rowing.
The aquatic centre has made it possible for rowing to become a 12-month sport at Otago University.
"When I joined we had a membership of between 80 and 100 and trained for five or six weeks to the Easter tournament," Sinclair said, "We now have a high-quality programme for 12 months."
THE SINCLAIR FILE
• Age: 35
• Occupation: CEO Otago University Rowing.
• Family: Christie (wife), Sam (5), Charli (2).
• Sport: Rowing.
• Administrative record: Life member OUSA, president NZ University Rowing 1999-2010, executive member Otago Rowing Association 1998 and 2004-09, Rowing NZ board 2010.
• Coaching: Head coach Otago University Rowing since 2003, coach NZ University crews.
• Competitive record: Won 7 NZ premier lightweight titles; NZ Under-23 team 1996, NZ University team 1995-2001, NZ Junior team 1992.
