Thanet Sports Awards 2010

Thanet Swim Club has had another fantastic year increasing their membership and surpassing all previous records by getting 12 swimmers to the National Championships at Ponds Forge in Sheffield. The club is run by a team of about 20 volunteers and has really put Thanet on the swimming map.  

This is the second year running for them for this award!

Coach of the Year

Sponsored by Thanet Sport Network

Colin Robinson is the main Go-Ride coach at Thanet Road Cycling Club where he manages a team of coaches and helpers from the club.

Go-Ride is British Cycling’s development programme for young people.  It provides a fun and safe way to introduce young riders to the world of cycle sport.

Colin is committed to continuing coach education and has passed all of the relevant qualifications.  His Go-Ride club is based at Marlowe Academy and membership levels are increasing.

Disabled Sportsperson of the Year

Sponsored by Pfizer Ltd

Sandie Tiley had a kidney transplant in 2005 and took part this year in her first British Transplant Games in Bath.

She competed in the 3k race walk, the 100m and 200m. She won the 100m event and was second in the other disciplines.  What a fantastic achievement.

Individual Sporting Achievement

Sponsored by Acorn Homes

Jamie O’Connor has been at Thanet Swim club since 2005 when aged 8 years. He has been in and out of hospital since he was 6 months old culminating in a final prognosis only this year. This meant a range of operations to resolve the issues and as a result he missed a lot of training. Rather than giving up Jamie kept positive and slowly increased his training. The hard work paid off with 6 gold medals at the South East regional championships. He has since achieved 6 national qualifying times and won 3 bronze medals at the National championships!

Long Service

Sponsored by Orbit South Housing

John White is a coach at Thanet Swim Club but has been involved in swimming in Thanet for over 30 years.  He has sacrificed thousands of hours of his own time for the benefit of the children along with adult swimmers.  He attends lots of competitions which require long travel times as well as attending the daily sessions at the pool!

Sportsman of the Year

Sponsored by Thanet District Council

Max Orrin has had a fantastic year in the sport of golf, becoming South of England champion and coming second in the national U16 championships. He has represented his country several times, including a trip to South Africa also being captain. He has also been selected to play for the U18 England team next year. He is the youngest champion of the North Foreland club championships.

Sportswoman of the Year

Sponsored by Thanet District Council

Louise Gates of Thanet Swim Club has been swimming as long as she can remember.  Now aged 17 she has managed to qualify for the national championships every year since she was 11.  Her commitment to swimming has never faltered including during the stressful exam times.  She is a role model for younger swimmers instilling the work ethic needed to succeed.  She is currently ranked 11^th in the country in the 18 year old rankings for 200m breast stroke.

Team of the Year

Sponsored by Kent Messenger

Unsung Hero

Sponsored by Thanet Sport Network

Lynn Gates has been a member of Thanet Swim Club for more than 10 years and was involved in other clubs previous to that.  She has been treasurer for the whole time but has also taken on other committee roles as and when they were left short! This has included arranging galas, collecting and administering funding, presentation nights and more.

Young Sportsperson of the Year

Sponsored by Thanet Leisureforce

Alexander Wilmshurst is a talented and dedicated swimmer who qualified for seven events at the National Age group Championships.  Earlier in the year he came fourth overall for his age group in the South East region. After that he upped his training knowing he could do more and finished sixth overall in the country including two bronze medals in the 100m and 200m breaststroke.

Young Team of the Year

Sponsored by Kent County Council

Thanet District Under 12 Football Team enjoyed the most successful season for a Thanet team in the 45 year history of the competition. They won the Kent league, remaining unbeaten throughout the season.

They reached the final of the Kent Cup, where they were unfortunate to lose.  But they put that disappointment behind them and reached the South East cup final.  They beat Croydon 4-1 at Hartsdown Park in front of a crowd of more than 300 people – more than the Margate first team are getting these days!

The boys were the first Thanet team to win the South East cup and they are now playing in the national cup competition this season. Four have already signed professional contracts with Gillingham and two are currently having trials with Tottenham Hotspur. They clearly have a great future ahead of them.  The boys are described as well disciplined, polite and courteous and they represent Thanet very well.