12 November 2010
BEST OF THE BEST FOR ROCHDALE'S SIMON JACKSON IN GM SPORTS AWARDS |
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| The remarkable achievements of local sporting hero Simon Jackson MBE has been recognised at this year's Greater Manchester Sports Awards. Now in its tenth year, these awards bring together the best of the best from each of the ten Greater Manchester boroughs' own Sports Awards held earlier in the year. |
| Having picked up Disabled Sports Achiever of the Year in the Rochdale borough awards, Simon Jackson was confirmed as the best in Greater Manchester at an awards ceremony held at the Midland Hotel, Manchester. |
| Simon is a multi-talented athlete who is currently competing in the sport of Tandem Cycling. He is a member of the Great Britain Tandem Cycling Squad achieving two gold medals, a silver and a bronze at the Paralympic World Cup. He is now training full time and aiming for the 2012 Paralympic Games. Visually impaired Simon's success in cycling comes on top of a glittering former career in judo. |
| He is Great Britain's most successful judo player of all time with an incredible 3 Paralymic, 3 World and 16 European gold medals throughout a competitive career spanning more than 20 years and 5 Paralympic Games. Simon continues to work to support local community sport through his own Judo Club. He was awarded the MBE in 1997 for his services to judo. |
| Chief Executive Officer of GreaterSport, Richard Saunders says, |
| "The Greater Manchester Sports Awards is always a fantastic event and this year was no different. The nominees were inspiring and the winners worthy of their awards. GreaterSport are proud to organise and host an event that recognises such hard work from the people of Greater Manchester." |
| The Rochdale Borough Sports Awards are organised annually by Link4Life and the presentation of awards was held at the Middleton Arena in October among fierce competition in a number of categories. Said event organiser Julie Durrant, "Simon is a truly inspirational figure and we were all delighted here at Link4Life when the award was announced. To excel in two completely different sports at the highest level is really remarkable." |
