Sporting excellence across the city was recognised in a memorable evening at City Hall which hosted the Norwich Sports Awards 2014 as PETER WALSH reports.
Sporting stars of all ages descended on City Hall last night where they received accolades as part of the Norwich Sport Awards which showed the city is not just a fine place but a fit and talented place too.
Brenda Arthur, leader of Norwich City Council and welcomed guests to the event which included Lord Mayor of Norwich Judith Lubbock who said she was delighted to be at the awards which fit in with two of her aims for this civic year - to encourage more walking and cycling in the city and in turn help keep Norwich and Norfolk healthy.
She said: 'It's an opportunity to recognise the great variety of sports that go on in the city and the degree of excellence that some people are taking their sport to.'
The winners were:
Young Achiever of the year (Sponsored by Pilch Sports and outdoor, a division of Jarrold)
Cameron Kirby, Norwich Snow Sports Club.
A naturally gifted 11 year old freestyle skier. He began skiing at Norfolk Snowsports Club at the age of six. He has performed beyond his years and has been recognised by GB's Olympic Coach, Pat Sharples as having a natural talent who, with the right coaching, could be something really special.
Adult Achiever of the year (Sponsored by Sportspark, UEA)
Nathan Dale, The Kickstop, Norwich
Nathan is a regular guest at local amateur boxing events as well as attending local schools and taking part in Charity work around Norwich.
Nathan is a passionate young Boxer who has his mind set on becoming the Southern Area Champion within the next six months and a long term goal of becoming World Champion.
Volunteer of the Year (Sponsored by Places for People Leisure Ltd)
David Mann, UEA City of Norwich Swimming Club
A volunteer for the UEA City of Norwich swimming club, the largest swimming club in Great Britain with 1300 members, he stepped in and took over as club treasurer back in 2010 when it fell on very hard financial times and was determined to firstly ensure that the club survived and to ensure it's long term sustainability.
Sports school of the year (Sponsored by the Community Sports Foundation)
City Academy
The Academy provides all of its pupils with high quality PE lessons that deliver the national curriculum using a wide range of different sports and physical activities in order to give all pupils the basic physical skills and a basic understanding of how to lead an active lifestyle.
Team of the year (Sponsored by Goals Soccer Centres)
UEA Women's Rugby Union Club
The success of the UEA Women's Rugby Team can be measured by the winning scores, the league, the Conference Cup and local derby.
The season has gone from win to win. Finishing the league with a points difference of 362 over their nearest rival.
Club of the year (Sponsored by the Norwich Evening News)
City of Norwich Athletics club
With a thriving junior section inspired by the Olympic successes at London 2012, the club has expanded its band of qualified coaches in the last 18 months to cope with unprecedented demand.
Coupled with an increasingly popular Sportshall programme, each week the club is now supporting the development and competitive aspirations of around 300 athletes under the age of 18.
Coach of the year (sponsored by the Community Sports Foundation)
Jane Blackwell, UEA City of Norwich Swimming Club
Jane's work is fundamental to the pathway to podium success. Her programme identifies and nurtures young talent aged 6-10. Over the last two years she has coached three young athletes to be ranked in the top 10 in the country in their respective ages.
Contribution to disability sport (Sponsored by Roy and Beryl Blower)
Katy Dunne, The Garage
Katy Dunne is a dedicated and passionate freelance dance artist who works with D4Dance at The Garage in Norwich.
D4Dance is a dynamic dance company especially for adults with disabilities. Katy meets the group on a weekly basis, working on building the individuals confidence and creativity whilst making inspiring choreography.
Active for Health Award (Sponsored by NHS Norwich Clinical Commissioning Group)
OPEN Youth Team
This award goes to a team who have been the driving force in encouraging other members of a Trust to get fit in 2014. The team consists of Ben Burt, Dan Jeffrey, Ally Flatman and Charlene Ledgard. The team like to lead by example by completing challenges such as the 3 Peaks. They encourage young people to follow suit and take part in fun activities such as street dancing, zumba, break dancing, ballet not to mention enrolling on a number of climbing courses.
Norman centre Award (Sponsored by Active Norfolk)
Barry Ferguson
Barry started coaching at the Norman Centre in 2011 and has since worked tirelessly to develop Bowls as a sport across all age ranges but also recognising its key role as a social inclusion activity in and around the Mile Cross community.
Championing Active travel (Sponsored by Walk Norwich)
Suzanne Reeves
Over the last year she has shown dedication, ingenuity and passion for encouraging her community to get active and walk more. She took up the voluntary role of City Walking Champion to support the launch of a new Health Walks programme for Norwich City. Since then she's played a key role in leading and promoting these walks.
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