Sky Sports Living for Sport Awards

My very first day at Sky back in 2007 was at a cold Sports Centre in Willesden.  I remember a boxing coach leading a Sky Sports Living for Sport session with a group of eager young people from the local secondary school. Little did we all know that coach would go on to become World Champion. His name: David Haye.

Six years on and Sky Sports Living for Sport has just blown the candles out for its tenth birthday.  It’s come on a long way from then, with a third of all secondary schools now taking part. David has moved on to pastures new but our brand new ambassador Jessica Ennis joins Darren Campbell and a 74 strong team of Athlete Mentors.  From Snowboarding to Cycling, Taekwondo to Triple jump, you can be sure one of our Mentors will be visiting a secondary school near you this week motivating and inspiring the next generation.

Last week 250 people packed in to Sky Studios to watch the stories of 12 inspirational people involved in the project. Wayne Instrell from Bedford Academy was crowned our overall UK Winner.  He was bullied so badly at school he could no longer participate in mainstream classes, and later lost his father, his bedrock and mentor. As you can imagine Wayne was very vulnerable when he was chosen to take part in Sky Sports Living for Sport. His project focused on swimming and even though he was terrified of the water, he confronted and overcame his fears and learned to swim.  Boosted by his achievements and visits from his Mentor, Women’s Rugby International, Maggie Alphonsi, Wayne has returned to class and now aspires to become a PE teacher.

Wayne’s story is just one of thousands across the UK. Watch his and all our winners’ stories here.