Video Recap: The FEVO Sport Industry Awards 2024 Judges’ Awards

One week on from the biggest night of the sport industry calendar, take a look back at the presentations, acceptance speeches and interviews for this year’s five Judges’ Awards.

Dame Laura Kenny won the Outstanding Contribution to Sport Award for a truly special career on the track which, in addition to seven World Championship titles, has seen her claim five Olympic gold medals, making her the most successful British female athlete in history.

“Each Olympic gold was very different. The first one I was young, I was 20, it kind of just happened. Obviously, lots of hard work went into it, but it was almost a dream. I was young and it came quite easy to me.

But the last one after having my first son, just meant the world to me. It just proved to so many women that, we can juggle both.

We don’t give ourselves enough credit for the fact that, when I wake up in the morning the first thing that I look at is my second son, Monty, and I’ve got like 20 tabs open in my head, and I’ll go out and I train. My body grew a human and then went onto the Olympics and I just think what we can do is unbelievable.”

Barbara Slater OBE was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award following a remarkable 40-year career in sports broadcasting with the BBC which saw her become the organisation’s first ever female Director of Sport.

“I’ve done 40 years at the BBC, 15 years as the Director of Sport and I mean I’ve loved every minute of it, Not gonna say there weren’t some challenges but it’s been amazing and if, during that time, I have been able to make a difference and just push and fight for women’s sport.

Ultimately, it’s our brilliant women athletes that really deserve the accolade, because of what they’ve achieved in the inspirational models that they are, if we’ve been able to showcase that just bit, then I’m really proud.

When I look around this room, you’re all movers and shakers. You are doers. You can make things happen. So whatever you do, keep the momentum  going behind women’s sport because it’s been on an amazing trajectory, but it’s not there yet, but it can be with the collective efforts of some of you brilliant people in this room.”

Yusra Mardini, a member of the Refugee Olympic Athletes Team that competed under the Olympic flag at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, was presented with the Integrity & Impact Award in association with InsightX by incumbent recipient John Amaechi OBE for her work representing refugees around the world.

“Thank you for honouring me with the Integrity & Impact Award, it means so much to be recognised by you all for something I truly believe in.

Everyone in the room tonight knows how powerful sport can be, I have seen the way it changes live, and it changed mine too. In fact, swimming saved mine in more ways than one.

It was hard to believe that when I left Syria with nothing, that I would again get the chance to participate in the sport I had always loved, but just a few years after swimming for my life in the Aegean sea, I was swimming at the Olympic Games at Rio. With over 114 million people displaced around the world, it is more important than ever to give refugees the chance to succeed. I am now dedicated to providing these opportunities for others. Together, through sport, we can create a better future for so many.“

Finally, Kevin Sinfield CBE and former Six Nations and Welsh Rugby Union commercial director Craig Maxwell were jointly presented with a Special Recognition Award by former Welsh Rugby captain Alun Wyn Jones for their respective charity fund-raising efforts.

“My diagnosis took quite a long time. It took 78 days for me to be diagnosed.

Me and my wonderful wife, we said that we can’t change that I have cancer, we can’t change that it is stage four, but we can change the journey that we went through for the next family.

Then more importantly for us as well, we just wanted to show that to our children in the darkest time, it can be good. you can make a difference and you can rise these when you feel like there’s nothing left, you can make a difference and that’s what’s kept us going.”

“The thing that’s going to shift the dial on Motor Neurone Disease – of course it’s the awareness – but it’s the money. The money will help us find drugs to slow it down to stop it and to eventually find a cure.”

Kevin Sinfield CBE

The Judges’ Awards recognise individuals and organisations within sport who have contributed at the highest level through personal and professional achievements. View the full list of winners from the main awards categories here.

Congratulations to all of the winners and to those who made the shortlist and were in attendance on the night. Thank you for your support.