THE cream of local sport packed into the Dave Ferguson Hall in Beau Sejour last night for the 2007 Sporting Achievement Awards. And the big winner at the island’s ‘Sport Oscars’ was Andy Priaulx, who walked away with the main prize, the Guernsey Sport Commission Trophy for the outstanding performer of the year.
Last November in Macau, the 33-year-old won the FIA World Touring Car Championship for the third year running.
He was also named as a Guernsey Sporting Hero after the rules were changed to allow sportsmen and women who were still active in their sport to be inducted.
‘It’s lovely to be a part of the history of the island and hopefully I can make more history in the future,’ said Priaulx.
Unfortunately both Dale Garland and Alison Merrien, who won the trophies for the outstanding individual sporting achievement for the year by a sportsman and sportswoman respectively, were not able to attend the presentation.
National 400m hurdles champion Garland won the Richard Burton Salver for also representing Great Britain in the event at the 2007 World Athletics Championships.
Merrien was crowned the lawn bowls Champion of Champions in Australia in November.
Heather Watson won the Lambourne Shield for the outstanding individual sporting achievement by a boy or girl between the ages of 11 and 18 years old.
The 15-year-old tennis protege, who is based at the world famous Nick Bollettieri Academy in Florida, enjoyed a sensational 2007 as she became the national under-16 champion, despite being at the bottom of the age group.
She also reached the semi-final of the under-18s event.
Her achievements also saw her crowned the Natwest Rising Star at last week’s CI Sports Personality of the Year.
‘I’m really happy to have won because I’m from Guernsey, born and bred,’ said Watson.
Other awards included the Sir John Loveridge Trophy for the sportsperson who made the greatest progress during the year went to cyclist James McLaughlin.
The 17-year-old Elizabeth College student finished runner up in the national junior hill climb championships.
‘It was really good to receive the award,’ said McLaughlin.
‘I was quite surprised because I knew I was up against great sports people.’
The team of the year, for sides with more than four competitors, went to the Guernsey rugby team who, against all the odds, beat Jersey to claim the Siam Cup.
‘It was a big achievement as Jersey would claim that theirs was their best team of all time,’ said captain Andy Bailey.
‘The challenge now is to win it back to back and that hasn’t been done since the 1960s. There’s an immense amount of talent in the squad and we can achieve a lot.’
The Beau Sejour Trophy for the performance of the year by an under-18 team was given to the Guernsey U-15 cricket who won their age group’s European Division Two tournament in La Manga, Spain last summer.
‘We’re delighted,’ said team member Max Ellis, 16.
‘We didn’t know what the quality was like when we got out there but we performed well.’
The awards were handed out by Britain’s most successful high jumper, Steve Smith, who won the bronze medal at the 1994 Atlanta Olympic Games.
Smith also holds the British record of 2.37m and a high jump bar set at that height was placed outside the entrance of the hall so that people could see the extent of his achievement.
These days Smith is a successful motivational speaker and he gave a very inspiring speech about his experience at the Olympics.
‘He was great,’ said the chairman of the Guernsey Sports Commission John Greenfield.
‘What we always go for is someone who is going to motivate our children and he certainly did that.’
Article posted on 31st January, 2008 - 12.00am
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