West Lothian sporting heroes are honoured

Mar 5 2009 by Eric MacKinnon, West Lothian Courier

WEST LOTHIAN Council honoured the cream of the county’s sporting crop this week at the third annual Celebrating Sport awards.

Over 200 sports stars of the past, the present and the future, local dignitaries, VIPs, and sports fans of all ages were at the ceremony to congratulate friends and colleagues on an exceptional year at the forefront of their specialist sport.

The evening was hosted by Director of the Institute of Directors David Watt.

He was assisted throughout the evening by Councillor Jim Walker and Gordon Ford, Director of Education and Cultural Services.

Guest speaker at the event which again took place in Houston House, was Mark Beaumont who fascinated all in attendance with his experiences of cycling solo around the world.

Mark pedalled into the Guinness Book of Records last year after cycling an incredible 18,000 miles in 194 days and 17 hours which worked out at a remarkable average of 100 miles a day.

He revealed to the audience the daily challenges he faced on his ride which took him through Europe, the Middle East, Australia and America.

Mark said that during his journey he was run down and mugged and at the end had to retrain his body to walk after spending so long on his saddle.

The nominees for the county awards this year were as always of an extremely very high standard.

Council Leader Peter Johnston, Provost Tom Kerr, Councillor Jim Walker and Fiona Fyfe, Chair of the West Lothian Sports Council, all presented awards.

Councillor Jim Walker, Executive member for Culture and Leisure said:

“I'd like to congratulate the worthy winners and all the nominees at the Celebrating Sport awards.

"West Lothian should be rightly proud of its sporting heritage, and these outstanding men and women play an invaluable role in carrying on this proud tradition.”

Nominations were invited from the West Lothian public last year for individuals and organisations who, in their opinion, had achieved particular success in sport in 2008.

There was huge response in a number of categories, which made the judging panel's job extremely difficult.

The panel included a previous winner, sportscotland, a West Lothian Councillor and the West Lothian Sports Council.

Gordon Ford, Director of Education and Cultural Services, added: “It was a privilege to have Mark Beaumont address the audience as he is an inspiration to every sportsperson.

“His determination to succeed and his willingness to literally go the extra mile has ensured that his achievements will be remembered for many years to come.

“I would like to thank all those who contributed to the awards ceremony and congratulate those who received awards.”

The county award winners on the evening were:

Young Sports Person Award: Ailsa Stryke (Karate) who pipped swimmers Craig Benson and Robert Dalgleish to the award.

Senior Sports Person Award: Philip Sutherland (Field Archery) was on target for the prize as he saw off competition from power lifter Scott Bruce and bowler Lorraine Malloy.

Contribution to School Sport Award: Allison Pace (Gymnastics) was the judges pick with basketball coach, Alan Hastie, and badminton mother and daughter coaching duo Marjory and Ingham McGhie runners up.

Coach of the Year: Matt Mackay’s contribution to Karate earned him the award for coach of the year and a voucher for £500 for coach education donated by sportscotland.

Volleyball coach, Sandra Bain and hockey wiz Gavin Malecki were named runners up.

Best Local Sponsor of Sport Award: Brian Currie Printers continued support for football earned them the sponsor’s prize.

The Gordon Dunne Group were named runners up for their contribution to rugby, as were Scotia Bearings for their support of volleyball.

Local Service to Sport Award: Swimming coach Lesley Prentice who was on duty at the Beijing Olympics last year won this award which was judged and provided by West Lothian Sports Council.

Another swimming coach, Jan Harvey, and James Pegg were runners up.