He will lead the Australian golf team in Rio when the sport makes its Olympic return after a 112-year hiatus.

The announcement has been made exactly two years before the Opening Ceremony of the Games, on August 5 2016.

Team leaders are tasked with "preparing their teams for success".

"Ian Baker-Finch is not only one of Australia's best ever golfers, but he has always been a real role model off the course," said Chef de Mission Kitty Chiller of the 1991 Open champion.

"He is the ideal choice to lead Australia back into the Olympic arena.

"I have had several conversations with Ian in recent weeks and he is extremely committed to not only helping our golfers perform well, but also to ensure they experience everything that the Olympics have to offer."

Australian golf is currently in rude health, with Adam Scott ranked number two in the world and Jason Day at number nine.

"I'm excited to be given this once in a lifetime, inspirational, challenging experience," said 53-year-old Baker-Finch.

"I am looking forward to this incredible honour of leading the men's and women's golf teams into Rio 2016, where I believe both teams have a strong chance of winning.

"The Australian team is one of the most respected teams in the world both on and off the field and our golf teams will compete with honour and integrity only enhancing that important image."

Snowboarder Torah Bright, basketball player Elizabeth Cambage, water polo player Holly Lincoln-Smith and rugby sevens squad member Alicia Quirk celebrate two years until the Rio 2016 Olympic Games ©Australian Olympic Committee



Also announced today as team leaders are Luca Liussi and Scott Bowen, who will take charge of the men's and women's rugby sevens squads respectively.

Liussi has worked as a rugby coach and manager for the last 12 years, including with the Italian Six Nations side and super rugby team Queensland Reds.

Bowen is a former Wallabies and New South Wales Waratahs flyhalf, and is currently team manager for the Australian women's sevens team.

Meanwhile, Jonathan Grady and Tamara Sheppard will lead the men's and women's basketball squads respectively.

They are both managers of the country's national men's and women's teams.

The sixth team leader for Rio 2016 unveiled today is Trish Heberle, who will support the men's and women's hockey teams.

A World Cup bronze medallist who narrowly missed out on a hockey medal at the Los Angeles 1984 Olympics, Heberle overseas the women's and men's national high performance hockey programmes, the junior performance programmes and hockey's national high performance pathways.

The announcement brings to 16 the number of team leaders announced by the Australian Olympic Committee for Rio 2016, with the first group named in April.

Among them was Adam Sachs, gymnastics national performance director who will join the team in Brazil.

The size of Australia's Olympic team at Rio 2016 is likely to be close to the record number who took part in an oversees Games at Athens in 2004 ©Getty Images



With rugby sevens debuting and golf returning to the Olympics, a team of around 470 is expected to compete at the Games in two years' time.

That would come close to the size of the largest squad to compete at an overseas games, with 486 at Athens 2004.

A top five finish on the medals table is being targeted for Rio, despite acknowledgement the task will be "tough".

Australia finished 10th on the medals table at London 2012, with seven gold, 16 silver and 12 bronze.

Chiller said: "Less than 10 per cent of our team has ever competed in Brazil.

"But our athletes are used to travelling long distances to foreign environments.

"We are more experienced at this than many of our European rivals and we need to use that to our advantage".