John Wayne Olsen AO (born 7 June 1945) is an Australian politician, diplomat and football commissioner.

He returned to the South Australian parliament in 1992, but was defeated for the Liberal party leadership by Dean Brown.

He attended Kadina Memorial High School,[3] later completing a certificate in business studies at the University of Adelaide and becoming a fellow of the National Institute of Accountants.

He later became managing director of the family business J. R. Olsen & Sons Pty Ltd, a car and machinery dealer.

[5][6][7] In 1976, Olsen was elected president of the Liberal Party of Australia (South Australian Division), serving until 1979.

Olsen's political career was marked by a bitter rivalry with Dean Brown, the two representing the conservative and moderate wings of the South Australian Liberal Party respectively.

Even with the likely support of the one National Party MP, the Liberals were still one seat short of making Olsen Premier.

He was appointed to the Australian Senate in 1990 to fill a casual vacancy caused by the resignation of Tony Messner.

However, Olsen's successor as state Liberal leader, Dale Baker, was unable to gain significant ground.

To facilitate this, former Deputy Premier Roger Goldsworthy, a leading member of the Liberals' right wing, resigned his seat of Kavel, based on Mount Barker, and handed it to Olsen.

Soon after taking office, Olsen led negotiations with Motorola to build a software centre in Adelaide.

Motorola decided to open the centre in April after winning a number of incentives, including becoming the supplier for a government radio network, and a contract was signed in June.

[8] By late 1996, however, the Liberals' poll numbers under Brown were stagnating in the face of factional battles and concerns about the slow pace of reform.

[8] During the ensuing 1997 election campaign, most commentators agreed that Olsen lost the leaders' debate against Labor's Mike Rann.

Among a number of controversial policies, Olsen's government undertook the privatisation of the state-owned electricity industry (ETSA), partly to improve the government's parlous financial situation due to the State Bank disaster and partly in response to the introduction of the Australian National Electricity Market, despite promising not to do so at the 1997 election.

The Olsen Government also secured major sporting events including the Tour Down Under and V8 Supercar Series.

[11] The V8 Supercar series attracts more than 270,000 attendees most years[12] He pursued a vigorous program of economic reform through the corporatisation and privatisation of government services which included the single largest public outsourcing project of its kind at the time in the world – the outsourcing of the State's water industry, a contract which included the establishment of a private sector water industry.

Following the Clayton report, the matter was referred to the then Director of Public Prosecutions, the late Paul Rofe, QC.

Prior to becoming Liberal Party President, Olsen was a registered political lobbyist and had worked with Bespoke Approach as a Special Advisor.