Volunteers who have shown outstanding dedication to sport in their local communities were honoured last night at the 51st Torch Trophy Trust Awards alongside sporting legend Sir Bobby Charlton CBE.
HRH The Princess Royal presented this year’s awards, which take place every year at the Royal Army and Navy Club in London to celebrate the tireless work of sport’s unsung heroes.
This year the awards were an extra special occasion as the Torch Trophy Trust also presented a lifetime achievement award to their President and national sporting hero, Sir Bobby Charlton CBE, in recognition of his lifelong service to sport.
Sir Bobby said: "I am delighted to receive this award from the Torch Trophy Trust. The Trust does a wonderful job of recognising, supporting and celebrating the work of volunteers in sport and it is an honour to have been associated with the charity for fifteen years.
But most importantly my congratulations go out to all of the volunteers who have been recognised at this year’s awards – they are the unsung heroes of sport and their achievements and dedication are truly admirable."
Lizzy Yarnold, skeleton star and winner of Team GB’s first gold medal of the Sochi 2014 Olympics, was there to support the awards and celebrate the wonderful achievements of all the volunteers.
The Torch Trophy Trust is a charity that recognises and supports volunteers in sport and recreation. Their annual awards are unique in celebrating the often thankless and unnoticed work of volunteers in sport at a very prestigious ceremony.
The Sport and Recreation Alliance has provided the day-to-day support for the Trust on a voluntary basis since 1999.
Legacy has always been at the heart of the Trust’s ethos – founded after the 1948 London Olympics with the aim of inspiring and rewarding volunteers, the Trust still uses the 1948 Olympic torch as its symbol.
This year’s awards gave much-deserved recognition to the men and women working hard to ensure that the legacy of the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games is felt in grassroots sport throughout the country.
Volunteers like them are a vital part of sport in the UK. As the thousands of volunteers who will make the Glasgow Commonwealth Games a reality this summer attend their first orientation sessions, the Torch Trophy Trust paid tribute to the people who make sport in local communities possible every day.
See a list of the 2014 winners of the Torch Trophy Trust Awards.
