The 31-year-old will be officially confirmed as the replacement for fellow track and field competitor John Steffensen, who left the board earlier this year, next week.

It marks an unusual move for an active athlete to take on a position within the ruling body of an organisation which manages them.

Pearson, who won Olympic hurdles gold at London 2012, announced she had accepted the role on Twitter.

"For many years now, I’ve dreamed of one day being in a position where I could influence and help advance the future of athletics in Australia," she said.

"I’m proud to announce to you all that I have accepted an opportunity to join the board of Athletics Australia as a director."

Pearson, the current chairperson of the Athletes' Advisory Committee at Athletics Australia, will continue to compete as well as serving in the board role.

She missed her home Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast in April through injury but is currently training for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

Pearson, a two-time world and Commonwealth Games gold medallist, vowed to take an active role in helping shape the future direction of the sport in the country.

"You can have opinions but until you know what is going on internally and why some things happen and what the finances are, then it hard to say what changes should be made," she told the Sydney Morning Herald.

"It's time to start implementing these ideas I have and listening to people and giving back to the sport.”