What can we say?
Sport England have presented The Sharks with an award for being the best sports satellite club in London for our work at Osterley Park.
This is an amazing tribute to the work of our coaches and other staff, so big, big thank-you, also a big thank-you to the National Trust and their staff at Osterley who have made the satellite club possible. The Club would also like to Thank London Sport, The London Borough of Hounslow and British Canoeing for helping set up the satellite club.
Our weekend sessions at Osterley Park regularly attract over 100 people and we are using the Satellite Club on a Wednesday evening to enable many of the youngsters who attend to take the sport up, to learn how to paddle properly and providing opportunities to compete in Sprint, Slalom, Marathon, Wild Water Racing and Canoe Polo.
What does this mean for The Sharks?
The Sharks have been expanding opportunities for people to take up paddle sport across West London, in Ealing, Hillingdon and Hounslow, we run sessions every day of the week at some location or another. We engage with more people than other clubs, canoeing or otherwise. We get people active and having fun, leading to healthier life styles. We know what we are doing is right and will lead to us becoming a truly great club, with mass participation and fantastic opportunities for people who want to achieve. But it is also nice that other people recognise what we are doing and for conformation of what we are doing is right.
However, this award is just a stepping stone on the pathway we have mapped out, but the recognition will help us along that path, because when we say we want to do things, we can point to the recognition and achievement and people, funders, councils etc will know we can and will deliver.
The Sharks has always been about the participants and with out them, we are nothing, so congratulations to all of the people who have paddled for recreation, fitness, fun, competition. Whatever your reason for being with us you have helped us achieve, so thank-you and well done.
https://londonsport.org/news/sharks-canoe-club-named-best-satellite-club-london/