At the prestigious South African Sports Awards in Bloemfontein on Sunday night, canoeing had three nominees of which two, Hank McGregor and Jenna Ward, were nominated in Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year however it was Kim Pople who shone the canoeing fraternities light brightest of all as she took home the nation’s Volunteer of the Year award.
Pople has been at the forefront of development at Umzinyathi Canoe Club at Shongweni Dam as well as taking on the role on the Canoeing South Africa board from January 2016. Pople’s administrative abilities were put on show at the ICF Canoe Sprint African Championships this year.
“Kim has been a new member of the Canoeing South Africa board but has become invaluable in the short time that she has been with us,” President of Canoeing South Africa Christo Horn mentioned.
“She has done a huge amount of work for canoeing development in KwaZulu-Natal and her work has helped her in being nominated for this award.
“We are incredibly proud of her and we understand the implications that such a prestigious award has on our sport.”
Canoeing had a golden night at the South African Sports Awards with two other nominations and Horn believes that receiving recognition on a national scale can only be a positive for the sport of canoeing.
“To have three nominations at such a prestigious event is incredible for our sport and along with Kim, we are also really proud of Hank and Jenna for their respective nominations,” Horn added.
Through such a meaningful impact in such a short space of time, Pople has been singled out for a higher position on the Canoeing South Africa board in 2017.
“We have decided that Kim is the incumbent Vice President of Canoeing South Africa.
“Her work at the African Sprint Championships and in general means that she is will take on a higher role from next year,” added Horn.