Former England footballer Ian Wright and former England rugby captain Sarah Hunter are among the sport’s stars honored in the King’s Birthday honors list.
Hunter, who has won 141 caps and was part of the team that won the 2014 World Cup, is among the many influential women on the list that also includes former UK Chief Executive of Sport Liz Nicoll, and former English football star Eniola Aluko. , former England cricketer Lydia Greenway and archers Fallon Sherrock.
Nicole, who led UK sport during a period of unprecedented success for Great Britain at the Olympic and Paralympic Games between 2010 and 2019, is named Dame.
Nicole said she was “blown away” by the honour, adding: “It’s been a real privilege to work in such different roles in the sport over the last 40 years, working alongside really talented colleagues, and I’m delighted to see the recent significant growth in the opportunities available.” For women and girls to get involved in sport, both in the UK and internationally.
“I feel so privileged to have been given the honor of becoming a lady.”
Greenway, the founder of Cricket For Girls and a four-time Ashes winner, became an OBE, while Aluko, who won 102 matches for the Lionesses, became an MBE.
Sherrock, 28, has been named an MBE for services to her sport. She made history in 2019 when she became the first woman to win a match at the PDC World Championships, and this year she became the first woman to throw the ninth in a PDC event.
An outspoken ally of women’s soccer, Wright became an OBE for soccer services and charities. The 59-year-old, who played as a striker for Arsenal, Crystal Palace and England, is now a popular broadcaster for BBC and ITV.
The list does not include former rugby league stars Kevin Seinfeld and Rob Borow, despite renewed calls for the duo to be recognized for their work raising awareness of motor neurone disease and to raise funds for research into the disease.
Boro was diagnosed with the terminal disease in 2019, and his friend Seinfeld has since raised more than £7 million through various charity challenges. Sinfield was appointed an OBE in the 2021 Queen’s Birthday Honours, while Burrow became an MBE in the 2021 New Year Honours.
John Gregg, who went on to score more than 700 games in a stellar Rangers career, became a member of the CBC.
Greig won five league titles and six Scottish Cups with the Light Blues and also captained the team to victory in the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1972.
Leicester Northern Ireland defender Jonny Evans was appointed, along with referee Amy Fearn, who in 2010 became the first woman to officiate a men’s Premier League match in the last 20 minutes of Coventry’s match against Nottingham Forest.
Greenway has been added to the list by fellow cricketers Adil Rashid and Sam Curran who are both MBEs.
Rashid was part of the England squad that won the 2019 World Cup and played alongside Curran in last year’s T20 World Cup victory.
Alfie Hewitt and Gordon Reed, who together captured their 17th Grand Slam doubles title in wheelchair tennis earlier this month at the French Open, have become OBEs.
Hewitt, 25, has won seven Grand Slam titles, while Reed, who became MBE in the 2017 New Year’s award list, has two Grand Slam titles.
Hewitt told the Palestinian News Agency: “I would never have dreamed of receiving something like this in my life, I have lowered my head and work hard at the sport that I love, so I am extremely proud and grateful for that, and everyone who has helped me get to where I am today.”
“It’s amazing to see wheelchair tennis and disability sports gaining this level of recognition. It’s so important to encourage people with disabilities to be active and just create a more inclusive society.
“It is a great passion for me to continue to grow in the sport, and through the platform I must send the message that anything is possible with a leap of faith, relentless determination and the right mindset.”
Reed added, “It is a great honor to be awarded the OBE at the King’s Birthday Party. I hope my platform as a professional athlete will help inspire others with disabilities to lead an active and positive lifestyle.”
There is also recognition of the England Rugby League World Cup winning rugby team.
Captain Tom Halliwell became an OBE, while team mate Sebastian Bashara and coach Tom Quaid became MBEs.
Nun Stanford, who won the women’s triathlon world title in 2013 and finished fourth at the 2016 Rio Olympics, is also named an MBE.
