Local Olympic and Paralympic medallists have been honouring volunteers at the British Canoeing Volunteer and Athlete recognition awards.
British Canoeing’s annual Volunteer & Athlete Recognition Awards on Saturday 19th November saw Olympic champion Joe Clarke and Paralympic bronze medallist Ian Marsden handing out awards at a star studded ceremony.
The Volunteer Awards and sets out to recognise the volunteers and paddlers who make the sport what it is today, and celebrates the fantastic achievements of their volunteer community.
Held at Eastwood Hall in Nottinghamshire, this year’s event, sponsored by Towergate Insurance, was attended by 160 guests. Olympic and Paralympic heroes, including local Gold Medallist Joe Clarke and Bronze medallist Ian Marsden who were in attendance to honour the winners, present the awards and talk about their medal winning achievements.
Whether through clubs, centres, communities or events, British Canoeing and the sport as a whole would not be what it is today without the army of volunteers that give up their free time. Volunteers make community sport happen and ensure that grass roots development continues to grow.
Joe Clarke presented the Ruth Holdway Community Volunteer of the Year award and the Club of the Year awards. He recognised the importance of volunteers to his Olympic success, saying that without those who gave up their time for the canoeing he would not be where he is today.
Joe said: “Volunteers are so important for the sport and I wouldn’t be where i am today without the support I’ve had from volunteers. There have been many people who have helped me along the way who aren’t paid, they just do it for the love of the sport. Those who originally got me into kayaking were volunteers and my first coach was a volunteer, it was not a paid role at all. To have achieved such success in Rio off the back of that is just so great because you can share it with everyone, and recognise the hard work they put in. It’s these people who wake up and eat and breathe canoeing that make it such a fantastic sport to be a part of.”
There were 9 awards in the 2016 Volunteer Recognition Awards; Young Volunteer, Community Volunteer, Event Volunteer, Impact on Disability, Coach of the Year, Outstanding Contribution, Club of the Year, Centre of the Year and the MacGregor Challenge Award. A full list of the winners on the night can be found here.
