Hampshire & Isle of Wight Sports Awards 2009

Sport Hampshire & IOW held the annual Hampshire Sports Awards at the Hampshire Rosebowl on Wednesday 25 March. The event recognised and rewarded sporting achievement throughout the county, celebrating commitment to and excellence in coaching, volunteering, participation and performance.

The evening saw many sporting stars and up and coming hopefuls for the future celebrate the county’s ongoing sporting success, along with those that have dedicated many years to the development of their chosen sport.

Below are the winners for each category


Junior Sportsman George Oliver, Karate, Havant Member of the England Shotokan Senior Squad at the age of 16, who won a Bronze medal at the JSKA World Championships 2008. George also won a Silver medal at the same championships in the individual competition.
Unfortunately Rebecca was unable to attend the evening due to training commitments at Loughborough in preparation for the U17 European Championships.	Junior Sportswoman Rebecca Jane Football, Basingstoke & Deane Rebecca is a member of the U17 England Team, who played in the FIFA Women’s U17 World Cup in New Zealand 2008, the team came 4^th. Rebecca also plays for Chelsea FC in the National League. Rebecca was also a member of the Hampshire Schools U16 team who went on to win the National Schools Cup.
Junior Disability Sportsman Thomas Spencer Table Tennis, Basingstoke & Deane Tom is a member of the Uk Transplant Team and has been a Gold Medallist in the British Transplant Games from 2003-2008. In 2008 Tom was selected to represent the UK at the World Transplant Games which are to be held in Austria in 2009.
	Junior Disability Sportswoman Marie Devlin Wheelchair Basketball & Powerlifting East Hampshire Marie excels in several sports. She is currently a member of the GB Women’s Wheelchair Basketball and Powerlifting training camps. During 2008 Marie medalled at the Stoke Mandeville National Junior Games in Powerlifting, Archery, Discus, 100m Wheelchair Race and Manual Slalom.
Senior Sportsman George Carter Powerlifting, Basingstoke & Deane George is the 2008 World Champion in the 125kg category. He also gained 2^nd place in the British Championships competing as one of the youngest competitors in the 20-23 age group.
Unfortunately Stephanie was unable to attend the evening due to her commitments at the World Cross Country Championships in Jordan.	Senior Sportswoman Stephanie Twell Athletics, Rushmoor In 2008 Stephanie was the youngest British athlete to achieve an Olympic ‘A’ qualifying grade for the Beijing Olympics, competing in the 1500m where she narrowly missed out on qualification for the final. Stephanie also became Britain’s only World Champion in the 1500m at the World Junior Championships in Poland.
Senior Disability Sportsperson David Smith Boccia, Eastleigh David was part of the Gold winning GB Boccia Team at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Both National and British Champion in 2008 David is currently ranked individually 2^nd in the world and 1^st in the team rankings.
	Masters Sportsman Andy Bonner Powerlifting, Basingstoke & Deane Andy is currently ranked No 1 in the World. During 2008 he took Gold at the World Masters and World Senior Championships. Andy broke the Open Squat and total World Record at the British Championships.
Masters Sportswoman Jean Maton Powerlifting, Basingstoke & Deane In 2008 Jean travelled to the World Masters in the USA where she retained her World title winning Gold for the 5^th year running. Jean also won Gold at the European Masters in Luxembourg.
	Junior Team Thornden U16 Boys Badminton Team Badminton, Eastleigh In 2008 the team travelled to Menorca to represent English Schools in the World Schools Badminton Championships. Facing 14 countries, the boys reached the 1/4 finals and finished 7^th overall. The boys were also National Inter-schools Champions for the 3^rd year running.
Senior Team The Quays Senior National Team Diving, Southampton At the 2008 British Diving Championships the Quays Senior National Team became Men’s Team Champions. Several members of the team featured as part of Team GB at the Beijing Olympics, no other diving club sent more divers.
	Coach of the Year Lindsey Fraser Diving, Southampton Lindsey is the Diving Development Officer for Southampton City Council and Director of Coaching for Southampton Diving Academy. She oversees a programme fro almost 400 divers ranging from beginners to Olympians. Lindsey was also one of 4 diving coaches at the Beijing Olympics.
Official of the Year Peter Nicholson Athletics, Basingstoke & Deane Peters achievements during 2008 span from club to International level. Featuring as an official in the European combined Super League event in Holland, the Crystal Palace Grand Prix and as a jump referee at the Olympic trials in Manchester
	Junior Volunteer Benjamin Godbold Cricket, Gosport Dedicated to cricket, Benjamin has devoted over 200 hours to his club, as both a coach and umpire for several different age groups. Benjamin has also devoted over 80 hours to Hampshire Cricket, helping with their holiday courses and the Hampshire Visually Impaired team.
Senior Volunteer Peter Bircham Disability Sailing, New Forest Peter helped found the New Forest and District Sailability (NFDS) in 2000. Initially the club only had 4 boats and a handful of volunteers, however with Peters contribution the club now has 172 members, 60 volunteers and 12 boats.
	Service to Sport Mike Firmin Synchronised Swimming, Rushmoor Mike was one of the founder members of Rushmoor Synchronised Swimming Club 42 years ago. He has coached a number of swimmers to Olympic and World standards and is still coaching regularly. Mike has also served the County ASA as both President and Secretary.