At the recent Oldest Athlete Celebration Event, the sport of netball was once again thrown into the spotlight when a netballer was given a coveted Team Player Award. This special evening took place on 29th September and was designed to celebrate the achievements of people who actively participate or volunteer in sports and physical activities across Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland.

Sue Jones from the Loughborough Town Netball League was just one of many people there to celebrate sports and physical activities across the generations. Sue is 61 years old and has played competitive netball for more than thirty years. She has also taken part on marathons as well as playing regular games of squash and badminton. Such dedication just goes to prove that you are never too old to be playing sports such as competitive netball as it truly is a game for every generation.

There were 53 nominees at the evening celebration and between them they had collectively amassed an incredible 4,177 hours of sporting participation. As well as ordinary sporting enthusiasts, there were also a few ex Olympians present to answer questions put forward by local school children.

Amongst the many inspirational people present—one of the judges, aged 77, had completed a gruelling 103 running race the previous weekend—the star was undoubtedly Pat Ward from Loughborough who was crowned the oldest Athlete. She was more than happy to tell the assembled audience how she still enjoys swimming most days despite the fact she is an amazing 98 years old!

This successful event looks set to become an annual celebration of the oldest and most physically active members of the community and it is hoped that many of the people nominated will volunteer to become Physical Activity Ambassadors who can advocate the benefits of participating in sports and physical activity.