The best of Hawke's Bay's sporting talent was honoured at a glittering awards ceremony at the Pettigrew-Green Arena on Saturday night.
The UnisonFibre 2013 Hawke's Bay Sports Awards evening was organised by Sport Hawke's Bay and it was a fantastic evening. Hawke's Bay Today is proud to be a sponsorof the event and we know how much hard work Colin Stone, Kevin Murphy and the team at Sport Hawke's Bay put into the event.
What made the evening special was that everything was of a very high standard. The master of ceremonies was sports journalist Phil Gifford and the guest speakers were champion rowers Eric Murray and Emma Twigg.
But the highlight of the evening was seeing all the talented sportspeople Hawke's Bay has produced getting the recognition they deserve. It was also good to know that the conveyor-belt of talent is still working with a number of youngsters receiving scholarships.
There were a few things that struck me about the evening. One was the humility of the older award recipients, especially those receiving recognition for years of service to their sport. They were simply honoured to represent their province and their country in their sport.
Another thing that struck me was what good role models our own Emma Twigg and fellow-Olympian Eric Murray are to up-and-coming youngsters. They were professional, courteous, smartly dressed and very gracious in everything they did on the night. They were a credit to their sport and helped make the evening special.
Young sports stars, including some of the winners of awards on Saturday, would do well to learn the behaviour of champions from them.
