S
sandar
Guest
In my other life as a human being not on the FS planet, I help a friend of mine look after a sport website. It is about Coventry sport in general and Coventry City Football Club in particular (soccer to you in the US).
My friend is probably one of the biggest football fans in the country. He has only missed one game, home or away since 1980 (heavy snow). He watches first team, reserve games, youth games, Coventry ladies even pre season friendlies in other parts of the world. If his beloved team is not playing, he will be watching his local amateur team play.
He writes and supplies reports for fan across the globe who cannot get to matches, he runs two websites and raises money for the club and for local charities (nearly £750,000 over the last ten years).
He is also very active in promoting his home city of Coventry, especially its cultural scene, music, art, sport, history etc. He does all this despite suffering from the debilitating illness Parkinson's disease.
Coventry City Football Cub contacted me just before Christmas asking if I would be interested in nominating the guy for the 2010 Sports fan of the Year, to be awarded in March. I was delighted to take on the task and set about writing a nomination worthy of the man.
I appealed for help and information and was pleased with the quality of information given, but disappointed by the relatively small number of people who responded. Long story cut shorter, the nomination was successful in that we are into the final round of judging. It is just a question of waiting now for the result.
The other day, I had a phone call form the former chairman, now a director on the board at Coventry City Football Club,thanking me for the work I had done in the nomination and the positive publicity I had got for the club. Then he invited me to be his guest at a home game of my choice.
I used to go and watch the team when I could, but since my accident put me in a wheelchair, it is not particularly pleasant going to watch any sporting event. Huge improvements have been made over the last ten years in disabled access, but it is difficult negotiating crowds in a wheelchair, you get put on a platform with other wheelchair users and away from your friends, getting to the toilet, getting cold, even seeing the action are all difficult. Then, in my case, it will take me a couple of day to recover form the outing.
I am hugely honoured to be invited as a VIP guest, but also embarrassed as all I did was gather information and write an article about one of the club's biggest ever fans, a guy who has done far more for the club than anyone else not employed by them. I think he should be the one rewarded, not me.
My friend is probably one of the biggest football fans in the country. He has only missed one game, home or away since 1980 (heavy snow). He watches first team, reserve games, youth games, Coventry ladies even pre season friendlies in other parts of the world. If his beloved team is not playing, he will be watching his local amateur team play.
He writes and supplies reports for fan across the globe who cannot get to matches, he runs two websites and raises money for the club and for local charities (nearly £750,000 over the last ten years).
He is also very active in promoting his home city of Coventry, especially its cultural scene, music, art, sport, history etc. He does all this despite suffering from the debilitating illness Parkinson's disease.
Coventry City Football Cub contacted me just before Christmas asking if I would be interested in nominating the guy for the 2010 Sports fan of the Year, to be awarded in March. I was delighted to take on the task and set about writing a nomination worthy of the man.
I appealed for help and information and was pleased with the quality of information given, but disappointed by the relatively small number of people who responded. Long story cut shorter, the nomination was successful in that we are into the final round of judging. It is just a question of waiting now for the result.
The other day, I had a phone call form the former chairman, now a director on the board at Coventry City Football Club,thanking me for the work I had done in the nomination and the positive publicity I had got for the club. Then he invited me to be his guest at a home game of my choice.
I used to go and watch the team when I could, but since my accident put me in a wheelchair, it is not particularly pleasant going to watch any sporting event. Huge improvements have been made over the last ten years in disabled access, but it is difficult negotiating crowds in a wheelchair, you get put on a platform with other wheelchair users and away from your friends, getting to the toilet, getting cold, even seeing the action are all difficult. Then, in my case, it will take me a couple of day to recover form the outing.
I am hugely honoured to be invited as a VIP guest, but also embarrassed as all I did was gather information and write an article about one of the club's biggest ever fans, a guy who has done far more for the club than anyone else not employed by them. I think he should be the one rewarded, not me.
