A NEW host has been announced for this year’s East Hampshire Sports Awards.
East Hampshire District Council (EHDC), organisers of the event, has announced that Roger Black will be hosting the event, which has received a record-breaking number of nominations.
ITV’s Fred Dinenage, who has hosted the sports awards every year in its six-year history, is unable to make this year’s event at Old Thorns Manor Hotel in Liphook on February 15 due to television commitments.
Roger was a guest speaker at the 2016 awards ceremony, and he represented Great Britain at the highest level of athletics for 14 years, both as an individual 400 metre runner and as a member of the 4x400 metre relay team, winning 15 major championship medals, including European, Commonwealth and World Championship gold medals. He also won an Olympic 400 metre silver medal at the games in Atlanta in 1996.
Roger will join guest speaker Ben Smith, who ran 401 marathons in 401 days, as the two guests of honour which will make this year’s event a very special occasion.
EHDC’s portfolio holder for customer service Cllr Julie Butler said: “Although it is disappointing to lose Fred Dinenage, who has done an excellent job over the past six years, we are delighted that we have secured someone of Roger’s calibre to step in.
“I was lucky enough to be at the sports awards two years ago and hear Roger’s incredibly inspirational and motivational speech and we are extremely lucky to have him back.”