Coaches Recognised at Sports Coach UK Awards

We are delighted to pass on our congratulations to Carol and Mick Downworth of Gateshead Community Rowing Club, who have been nominated as finalists in the category ‘Community Coach of the Year’ in the sports coach UK Awards.

Mick and Carol (who is registered blind) were asked by their club to help with a new programme delivering Rowing to injured military service men and women based in the nearby Help For Heroes Recovery Centre. Some of the veterans involved in the programme lived in Gateshead and wanted to row more often and more locally. This was the start of Gateshead Community Rowing Club and in 2014 they achieved their target of rowing in The Great Tyne Row.

Although little more than a year old, and a small club of 25 full members, ten of whom have disabilities, the club is growing and Carol and Mick regularly run sessions for other groups including CRISIS, a local learning disability group, and referrals from Gateshead Council Health Trainers.

A testament to the apt name of Gateshead Community Rowing Club, truly supporting other members of the locality.

This prestigious award ceremony, held tonight (1 December) at the Midland Hotel Manchester, honours sports coaches and coaching organisations who have demonstrated outstanding success over the previous 12 months. The event aims to raise the profile of coaches and the role they play in encouraging participation, performance and excellence. The awards are made following a public nomination process and decision by a judging panel of coaching experts from all four Home Countries. Winners of local and Home Country Awards are also short-listed automatically.

More than 1000 nominations have been received across 25 different sports, so we are excited that these two members of our rowing community have been recognised as finalists and wish them luck with the awards tonight.