NEWS

Tower Hamlets BMX picks up another prestigious award

22-07-2014

One of Access Sport’s BMX Legacy Programme clubs, Tower Hamlets BMX collected its third significant award in less than three years at the London Cycling Awards on Wednesday 16th July, 2014.

 

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The Youth Sector Cycling Champion of the Year award recognises the wonderful contribution the club is making to encourage more young people to have a go and develop a lifelong love of cycling.

 

The club runs club sessions for all ages and abilities but also run bike maintenance workshops, a women & girls only session to engage the large Muslim population in Tower Hamlets, a deaf adults group, a home-educated children session, a disability inclusion session for autistic children, outreach sessions for schools for kids with severe and complex social, emotional and behavioural difficulties and special educational needs and each week Bow Boys School come to the track for an after-school club that tackles serious behavioural problems and gang involvement.

 

The club runs a 12week bike maintenance programme every school term with young people from 13 to 16yo in partnership with Access Sport and BikeWorks. The first programme started in September 2013 and already had one of the participants signed up to the BikeWorks Pre-Apprenticeship Programme.

 

The success of Tower Hamlets BMX has even spawned plans for a second BMX club in Langdon Park. Tower Hamlets will then be the only borough in London to have more than 1 BMX club and track. This club will develop a brand new BMX track and become a satellite club of Tower Hamlets BMX, building on its outreach programme, recruiting more volunteers, coaches, young leaders and participants from all parts of the diverse Tower Hamlets community.

 

Tower Hamlets BMX was the PRO-ACTIVE London Club of the Year 2013 and its coach was named London Coach of the Year 2013. The Club is also one of the first BMX clubs to become Clubmark accredited through British Cycling. All of this has been achieved in less than 3 years from one of the capital’s smallest BMX tracks.

 

The event, organised by the London Cycling Campaign, and hosted by broadcaster and bicycle enthusiast, Jeremy Vine in St Martin’s in the Fields, Trafalgar Square saw invited guests and finalists gather to celebrate cycling in the city.

 

Separated into two parts, the Consumer Award categories commended excellence among brands, events and cycle champions, whilst the Project Awards honoured initiatives and individuals within the cycling community. The general public have been voting in their thousands for winners of the Consumer Awards whilst the Project Awards were judged by a panel of cycling experts.

 

Movers and shakers in the cycling world came together to see the best in their field crowned and commemorated for contributions made over the last twelve months.

 

Ashok Sinha, CEO of London Cycling Campaign says: “We’re delighted that, in only its second year, the London Cycling Awards has become so popular! It was a great pleasure to give recognition to a breadth of people and organisations, from cycling brands and retailers to community projects and champions. Our winners have worked tirelessly to promote cycling so we feel honoured to be able to give them the thanks they deserve. With the rise of cycling in the capital we look forward to an even bigger event next year.”

 

Event host, Jeremy Vine, added: It was great to see so many people coming together for the London Cycling Campaign. In the end, cycling is about enjoyment – and the night was a reminder that there are some great people doing great things on bikes and for bike riders and it is one of the most exciting areas of campaigning to be involved in. Well done to the London Cycling Campaign for organising this. What a great night.

 

The full list of winners is as follows:

 

PROJECT AWARDS

Nominated by the public and chosen by a panel of independent cycling experts

 

  • Cycling Initiative of the Year: GREAT WESTERN QUARTER RESIDENT’S BIKE CLUB
  • Youth Sector Cycling Champion: TOWER HAMLETS BMX CLUB
  • Grassroots Project of the Year: RESPOKE COMMUNITY BIKE EXCHANGE. TRAILNET.CIC
  • Digital Campaign of the Year: BIKEMINDED SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN
  • Best Space for Cycling Project: ROYAL COLLEGE ST CYCLE TRACKS, CAMDEN

 

 

CONSUMER AWARDS

Nominated by London Cycling Campaign members and voted for by the public

 

  • Cycling Brand of the Year: LOOK MUM NO HANDS!
  • Best Large Bike Retailer: WIGGLE
  • Best Small Bike Retailer: BRIXTON CYCLES
  • Cycling Champion of the Year: CHRIS BOARDMAN (MBE )
  • Bike Blog of the Year: ROAD.CC     

 

More information on all of the winners: www.lcc.org.uk/awards