Rotorua rower Julia Edward has won the Supreme Award at the annual Bay of Plenty Sports Awards.
ROTORUA rower Julia Edward has won the Supreme Award at the annual Bay of Plenty Sports Awards.
The world champion rower was given the top honour last night during the awards evening at the Energy Events Centre.
Image 1 of 12: Bay of Plenty Sports Awards. l-r Manaaki O'Brien, Sam Thompson, Amanda Heapy, Save Waqa Photo/Ben Fraser
Edward and rowing partner Sophie MacKenzie (Blenheim) not only won gold at the rowing world championships in Amsterdam in August, they also smashed the world record in the women's lightweight double scull event.
It marked the first time Edward had won a gold medal at the world championships.
Edward, 23, is now focused on going further in the New Zealand lightweight double scull boat and has her eyes set on the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Edward won the Holland Beckett Lawyers Sportswoman of the Year award earlier in the night, beating other nominees Samantha Charlton (hockey), Lisa Carrington (kayaking) and Zoe Stevenson (rowing).
The Bayleys Real Estate Sportsman of the Year award went to Peter Burling (sailing) and the Farmer AutoVillage International Sportsperson of the Year award was presented to Valerie Adams (shotput).
Water sports shone through this year with multiple accolades for surf lifesaving, rowing and sailing.
Internationally recognised rugby referee Glen Jackson took the MoreFM Official of the Year award for the second year in a row.
The AquaPlus Club of the Year title went to the Devoy Squash and Fitness Club in Tauranga which has undergone significant membership growth and event planning over the past 12 months.
Hosted by Sport Bay of Plenty, the 2014 Bay of Plenty Sports Awards recognise and celebrate outstanding achievement by Bay of Plenty athletes, coaches and officials over the past 12 months.
Judge Hamish Ashton said he felt privileged to again be part of the awards night. "The process of deciding finalists and winners has been just as hard this year as previous years. This creates some robust discussion among us as a judging panel.
"When you have champions in diverse sports every little detail is considered when deciding who is the ultimate winner. It is a challenging but very rewarding process.
"Having been involved with the awards for a number of years now it has been great to follow the progress of some of our college athletes through to the international stage. There is a huge, but largely unrecognised, amount of talent here in the Bay."
The Dudfield Bryce Printers Service to Sport category acknowledged people who have been involved in their sport for at least 10 years and have made a significant contribution at either regional or national level.
The opportunity to recognise these seven stalwarts of the sporting sector was a highlight as they were unaware until the award was presented on the night. More than 450 guests attended.
Full list of award winners:
¦ Sport Bay of Plenty Supreme Award 2014: Julia Edward (rowing)
¦ MoreFM Official of the Year: Glen Jackson (rugby)
¦ Rotorua Trust Team of the Year: Papamoa Surf Life Saving Club IRB team
¦ P2P Physio Junior Team of the Year: Papamoa Surf Life Saving Club youth team
¦ AquaPlus Club of the Year: Devoy Squash and Fitness Centre
¦ Dudfield Bryce Printers Open Service to Sport: Pam Clayton (netball), Gwenda Ruegg (swimming), Sue Clarke (canoe slalom), Jennie Taylor (hockey), Ray Wells (football), Rob Beckett (rugby), Lyn Govenlock (cricket)
¦ Bay of Plenty Secondary Schools Principals' Association Secondary School Service to Sport: Kim Stevenson (athletics/cross country)
