Beyond Sport, the global initiative which seeks to unearth, celebrate and support the world’s most inspirational sports projects, people and organisations that drive positive change through sport, has announced the winners at this year’s Beyond Sport Awards 2009.
The winning entrants were officially honoured at the Beyond Sport Summit, which was led by influential global figures including former British Prime Minister Rt. Hon. Tony Blair; Archbishop Desmond Tutu; Prince Faisal Al Hussein of Jordan; Mayor of London Boris Johnson and Wilfred Lemke, United Nations Special Advisor to the Secretary General.
The winning projects that were announced throughout the day were:
- Johann Koss, who founded Right to Play, was given the Special Recognition Award.
- Saving Lives Through Dance, a mental-health project from India, won Best Project for Health.
- Project Alcatraz, a rugby project from Venezuela, won Best Project for Social Inclusion.
- To close the event, former secretary-general of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, was given the Humanitarian in Sport Award.
- Earlier in the day, Coaches Across Continents, which piloted in Tanzania, won Best New Project.
- Spirit of Soccer, headed up by Scott Lee, was given the Most Courageous Use of Sport Award.
- Open Fun Football Schools, which reaches Bosnia Herzegovina, FYR Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, Kosovo, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Moldova, Lebanon, Iraq, won the Sport for Peace Award.
- Goals for a Better Life, fromColombia, picked up the UNICEF Children’s Rights Award.
- Deloitte Disability Sport Programme; Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme (TASS), put forth by Deloitte from theUK, for the award in Best Corporate Social Responsibility in Sport.
- Goal inIndia, put forth by the International Federation of Netball Associations for Best Project by a Sport Federation or Governing Body.
- Team Globalbike from the United States, a project started by the Globalbike Cycling Team, which won Best Project by a Professional Sports Team.
Beyond Sport is partnered with Barclays Spaces for Sports, TIME International and Virgin Atlantic.
