Greg Searle MBE Head Ambassador Expand Winning gold in the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games and Bronze in London 2012, Greg is a globally recognised British Olympic rower. He also holds one World Championship gold, three silver and three bronze. In addition to Greg’s sporting accolades, he is the author of ‘If Not Now, When?’ and regularly takes the stage as an inspirational speaker. His involvement with charities extends far beyond sport, as he delves into areas such as medical research to help prevent illness in children. Greg is Access Sport’s head Ambassador and was made an Honorary Patron in 2018 due to his support and commitment to changing the lives of disadvantaged young people through sport. He has been working directly with team members on development and fundraising.Furthermore, Greg regularly leads our annual dinner events. "I support Access Sport because it sits close to my personal values. I was fortunate to have access to great sports facilities as a kid. My parents were great role models for me and I met many great people through sport. I now try to give my own kids the same opportunities but I know many young people aren’t so lucky. By supporting Access Sport I hope I can do something to help." Greg Searle Greg Searle, Linkedin
Ali Jawad Expand Ali is a Paralympic Silver Medalist, powerlifting World/Euro Champion and setter of world records. Despite being told that his disability and illness could kill him, Ali is a true champion of adversity. As of July 2018, Ali has been appointed to the board of Commonwealth Games England. Additionally, He is also a member of the UK Anti-Doping committee and works closely with the charity Crohn’s & Colitis charity UK. Ali particularly supports our Disability Inclusion Programme aimed at giving more young disabled people, specifically those in disadvantaged areas, access to sport. As a passionate advocate for inclusion he has also most recently launched the app Accessercise, the first ever fitness app for people with impairments. “Having faced up hill struggles all my life, being born with no legs and then being diagnosed with Chron's disease, seeing the support Access Sport give to your people in disadvantaged areas or suffering hardship is amazing. I'm proud and honoured to support such a forward thinking charity.” Ali JawadAccessercise
Declan Brooks Expand Declan Brooks became an Access Sport Ambassador in 2022, having recently won a bronze medal in BMX Freestyle at the Olympic Games in Tokyo. Declan was born in Portsmouth and grew up riding BMX at his local skate park in Southsea. Before winning an Olympic bronze medal, he won a bronze medal at the European BMX Championships in Valmiera, and a silver in the freestyle World Cup in 2019. Declan is a big supporter of Access Sport’s inclusive cycling offer, which aims to give every young person access to a bike, the skills and confidence to use it and somewhere local, safe and exciting to enjoy riding. Declan opened a brand new, all-ability cycling facility in Stockwood, Bristol on behalf of Access Sport in May 2022 and passionately believes in creating more open-access, community cycling facilities so that all young people can enjoy cycling.
Gail Emms MBE Expand Gail has achieved international success through English Badminton, winning gold in the 2006 World Championships and silver at the 2004 Olympic Games. Following her retirement, in 2014 Gail founded Gail Emms Consultancy and is the female face and voice of badminton, with the aim to inspire a new generation of athletes that know no boundaries. Gail has long supported Access Sport, regularly donating a unique Badminton Master class to be won at the annual dinner. It is always a pleasure to welcome Gail to our events every year.
Helen Richardson-Walsh MBE Expand Helen has been a member of both England and Team GB hockey since 1999, winning numerous Commonwealth, Euro, World and Olympic medals, the most notable being a gold medal won at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Helen is a committed supporter of our annual dinner and we were honoured to have her attend and host this year. She is a very vocal and keen advocate of mental health support and also stands strongly for inclusion within sport among the LGBT community. Helen has been very involved with our Flyerz Inclusive Hockey project, accompanying a Flyerz team to attend the European ParaHockey Championships in Amsterdam. Helen has also traveled to Barcelona to support a Flyerz ParaHockey match. Helen, and wife Kate also hosted an exclusive event at the Richardson-Moore suit at the Vitality Hockey World Cup, helping to inspire others in inclusive youth hockey. Since then Helen and her wife Kate have started their own Flyerz hockey club for the young people in their area and continues to inspire and support others to do the same. Twitter: @h_richarson8
Kate Richardson-Walsh OBE Expand Kate is a former captain of GB and England Women’s Hockey Team. Kate holds a myriad of international titles, the most notable being an Olympic gold medal which she won at the 2016 Rio Olympic games. Kate is a very proactive supporter of Access Sport, regularly attending events including the annual dinner. Kate shares her experience through motivational speaking, centred around team-work, leadership and inclusion. Kate is currently an ambassador for Women’s Sport Trust where her efforts work towards creating visible, strong female role models. Kate has been a keen supporter of the Disability Inclusion Programme’s work, to make hockey more inclusive through Flyerz hockey. In 2013 Kate, and wife Helen, attended the very first Flyerz Festival and travelled with the Flyerz team for the European ParaHockey Championships in Amsterdam, where they came away with the gold! They are both active advocates of inclusivity in hockey at the grass roots level also running a Hockey workshop for youth in local areas. You can check out the video here: “It is an honour to be an Access Sport Ambassador and to be involved in Flyerz Hockey.” Kate Richardson-Walsh
Olivia Breen Expand Olivia Breen became an Ambassador for Access Sport in 2022, shortly before winning a gold medal in the Women's T37/38 100m Final at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. Olivia is a Paralympic athlete, who has competed for Wales and Great Britain mainly in T38 sprint, T35-38 4 x 100m relay, and T38 long jump events. She began training with the junior group of the City of Portsmouth Athletics Club in England at age 13.Olivia has won Paralympic bronze medals in London 2012 (4 x 100m relay, T35-38) and Tokyo 2020 (long-jump, T38). She has represented Wales at the 2014, 2018 and 2022 Commonwealth Games, winning gold in the long jump at the Gold Coast games in 2018 and gold in the T37/38 100m sprint at Birmingham in 2022. Olivia has also won several medals competing at the IPC World and European Championships, most notably winning gold medals and setting a new world record in both 2015 (IPC World Championships) and 2016 (IPC European Championships) as part of the 4 x 100m relay team. Olivia shares Access Sport’s vision that no one should be excluded from the transformational benefits of community sport and she would like to see more opportunities for disabled and disadvantaged young people to be physically active in their local communities.
Quillan Isidore Expand Professional BMX rider Quillan, competed in the time trials at the 2015 World Championships. Quillan is an avid supporter of Access Sport’s cycling programme. He learnt to race on the first bike track built by Access Sport, Peckham BMX, and his and fellow ambassador Tre’s, incredible story was made into the feature length film 1 Way Up. Quillan is an ambassador of the cycling programme and spoke at the reception during the expansion of the work into Bristol. 1 Way Up trailer:
Shanaze Reade Expand Shanaze is a former professional British BMXer and track cyclist, who has won the BMX World Championships three times and the team track sprint twice. In 2005 Shanaze was named one of the “Magnificent 7”, and in 2007 she was named The Sunday Times Young Sportswoman of the Year. Shanaze has become an ambassador for British Cycling, Sported and Access Sport - Shanaze is also an active supporter of Access Sport’s cycling programme, previously running a BMX camp to help engage more young people (have a look at the video below). She has also been supporting Access Sport’s expansion of our cycling offer in Bristol, speaking about her BMX journey at fundraising events and promoting the programme.
Tre Whyte Expand National BMX champion, in 2014 Tre claimed bronze in the World Championships. Tre is a keen supporter and Ambassador of the cycling programme. Outside of his sporting endeavours Tre has also worked with the England Footballers Foundation, in an effort to improve local clubs and promote BMX. Originally he learnt to race on the first bike track built by Access Sport, Peckham BMX, and his and fellow ambassador Quillan’s, incredible story was made into the feature length film ‘1 Way Up’. Tre regularly attends fundraising dinners and spoke at the reception to launch the cycling programme in Bristol. 1 Way Up trailer:
Vanessa Raw Expand Once professional triathlete, now professional artist, Vanessa achieved 8 top ten positions and won 3 medals between 2006 and 2010 after taking part in 26 ITU competitions. Away from sport, Vanessa uses her degree in Fine Art and passion as an artist to paint - many of which go on to be sold for charity, raising thousands. Vanessa is a keen supporter of Access Sport’s work that seeks to provide disadvantaged children and young people with a physical literacy in swimming, cycling and running. Vanessa has also supported the annual dinner and previously provided her artwork for the auction.