Sport Stars Shine At Annual Awards

The Active Tameside Sport and Physical Activity Awards returned with a bang - and there were plenty of worthy winners across nine different categories.

The event, a key date on the sporting calendar in Tameside, celebrated the achievements of clubs, groups and individuals over the past 12 months.

Due to Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent restrictions placed on sports and large social gatherings, the event had been cancelled over the past two years and returned in September. 

Unfortunately, owing to the cost of living crisis, organisers made the difficult decision to reform the ceremony and base the awards on their online platforms.

The changes didn’t dampen the spirits, and nominees across the different categories organised their own social gatherings to celebrate the occasion. Tameside Netball Club, whose long-serving coach Jane Chisnall won the Unsung Hero of the Year award, hosted their own get-together, whilst Stalybridge Cricket Club - which had nominations in two categories this year - opened its bar facility for players, family members and volunteers.

Before the ceremony began, an inspirational speech was delivered by former professional boxer and Commonwealth Champion Stacey Copeland, who enjoyed an incredible career in both football and boxing before taking up media duties upon her retirement last year. Stacey, who created the Pave The Way project - which aims to inspire women and girls through sport but also promotes women who work in sport but are not athletes and therefore receive little recognition for their efforts - is a highly respected figure in the borough. Here are the winners from this year’s event. Andy Dwyer, who coordinated the event, said: “Congratulations to all of our nominees and winners for 2022, this shows the strength and depth of the sport and physical activity community within Tameside, volunteers are the heartbeat of every club and group and provides the platform for people of all ages to reach their potential, all of our clubs and groups provide people with social interaction which leads to lifelong friendships and community cohesion which is so important in today’s society”.

Here's our page on the awards, which will be featured in this week's Tameside Reporter: