The Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy Tipped for Sport Venue of the Year
The Sport Industry Awards, Europe’s largest and most prestigious commercial sport awards, will take place tomorrow Thursday 13th May 2010. The Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy (WPNSA) has been shortlisted for the Sport Venue of the Year Award. The Sport Industry Awards, ‘the Oscars of the sports world,’ according to both the Observer and the Times, recognise and reward the best the sport business has to offer. The black tie event includes dinner and a formal awards ceremony. In the category for Sport Venue of the Year, the WPNSA are up against tough competition; SWALEC Stadium, the Brit Insurance Oval, the O2, Twickenham Stadium and Wembley Stadium.
Previous star-studded awards ceremonies have been attended by the likes of Jenson Button, David and Victoria Beckham, Sir Bobby Charlton, Joe Calzaghe, Arsene Wenger, Michael Johnson, Lord Coe, Bernie Ecclestone, Frank Lampard, Martin Johnson, Michael Vaughan, Alain Prost and Ron Dennis – to name but a few. To the 1,400 attendees at the sell-out event it is the most important event in the sports business calendar.
Judging for the Sport Industry Awards effectively takes place in two phases. Initially, over the course of January, individual steering committees comprising of selected industry experts come together for each of the award categories to run the rule over all the entries before finalising the shortlist. The steering process involves 50 key industry figures and more than 40 hours of intensive judging before the final shortlist for the Sport Industry Awards can be revealed.
With a substantial year-on-year increase in entries for the Sport Industry Awards, reaching the shortlist represents a stellar achievement on the part of the WPNSA. And it is obvious to see why the Academy was shortlisted; since being the first Games venue to be completed in 2008, the WPNSA has been host to a wealth of international sporting events including high profile elite regattas, national championships and local grass root events across all classes. The award winning venue has established a strong sailing community that harbours up-and-coming talent whilst also encouraging newcomers to the sport. It is fast becoming a world class venue for on shore and marine sporting events that is establishing a legacy way beyond the Games.
John Tweed, Chief Executive at the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy commented; “Everyone who has been involved with the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy is thrilled at the recognition that comes with being shortlisted for this award and it is also great for the sport of sailing. We are up against some well established sporting venues so it is fantastic to be selected in the same Sport Venue of the Year category.”