Witney News - Oxfordshire Sport Awards

Oxfordshire Sport Awards

Two sports performers from West Oxfordshire have been shortlisted as finalists in the Oxfordshire Sports Awards 2008.

Triathlete Graham Kiff and freestyle kick-boxer Imogen Shayler, who are both world champions in their field, are among sports performers picked from 100 nominees by a panel of judges from the Oxfordshire Sports Partnership (OSP).

They will find out whether they have won an award at a gala awards ceremony next Friday (November 7th) at the Kassam Stadium in Oxford.

The awards have been organised by OSP for the past three years and recognise the tremendous amount of sporting talent in Oxfordshire. There are 12 categories covering a range of sporting specialities (see Notes to editors for full list).

Mr Kiff and Miss Shayler, both from Witney, were nominated for the awards by West Oxfordshire District Council, which is a member of the OSP.

• Mr Kiff, who is registered blind, is finalist in the Disabled Sportsperson of the Year category. His achievements include: becoming a new World Champion after winning a gold medal in the triathlon at the World Disabled Championships in Canada in June; 2nd place at the British Disabled Triathlon Championships in June; competing in the London Triathlon in August as part of Project Viper, a group raising funds for sight-related charities and awareness that visual impairment is no barrier to taking on physical challenges.
• Miss Shayler, who is 15 and a student at Wood Green School, Witney, is finalist in the Junior Sportsperson of the Year category. She has gained several prestigious titles for freestyle kick-boxing this year alone, including: World Champion for Continuous (Under 16s) 2008; European 2008/9 Grand Champion; European Champion 2008/8; Greek Open International Point Champion 2008.

Both Mr Kiff and Miss Shayler received Achievement Awards (Graham £250 and Imogen £220) last year from the Council as part of a grants scheme to support and help the development of sportspeople in West Oxfordshire.

Cllr Hilary Biles, Cabinet Member for Leisure, Tourism and Health, said: “Both Graham and Imogen deserve to be finalists in the Oxfordshire Sports Awards 2008 and the Council wishes them good luck for Friday. They are both extremely dedicated and are role models to all others. The Council is pleased to have been able to support them and will continue to watch their progress with interest.”

To find out more about the awards, visit www.oxfordshiresport.org.