I was asked if I could give a talk to the children at Kings College School in London to help inspire them on the run up to the Olympics and Paralympics games, of course I said yes, but unfortunately the traffic was horrendous and I arrived a little late. I made my apologies and spoke to a very small group of children that seemed to enjoy what I had to say,
after my little speech I was asked if I would like to try my hand at Water Polo, it was my first time and
Southend-on-Sea’s sporting heroes were honoured at the borough’s sports awards. The annual sports awards took place on the 9th November 2011 at the Cliffs Pavilion in Westcliff. Cyclist and Commonwealth Games time trial silver medalist Alex Dowsett was the guest of honour presenting the awards & trophies.
You will be pleased to hear that Jo-Jo received several awards that evening. But due to her training commitments at Loughborough, for London 2012, she was unable to attend the prestigious ceremony. Her father, Andrew, stepped in and collected the following awards on behalf of Jo-Jo.
Jo-Jo was named Rochford District Disability Sports Personaility of the Year 2011, she was also nominated with distinction for Sports Personality of the Year.
Services to Sport went to Doug Drake (Head Coach)
Sports Personaility of the Year went to Phil Harper (Masters Swimmer)
The 4th Annual Rochford District Sports Awards took place on Thursday 13th October at the Mill Arts & Events Centre, Rayleigh, and once again Waters & Stanton were proud to be sponsoring the ‘Disability Sports Personality of the Year Award’. Nearly 200 guests attended the event which was compered by BBC Essex Sports Journalist Ben Fryer.
Swimmer Jo-Jo Cranfield won the ‘Disability Sports Personality of the Year’ for the second year in a row. At the DSE Short Course Junior Nationals 2010 held in Sheffield in February she won Silver medals in 100m Freestyle, 200m Medley, 400m Team Medley & 100m Breaststroke. She also passed her A-Levels and earned a place at the prestigious Loughborough University studying for a degree in Sports Coaching, she has also been offered a place in the Elite Loughborough University Swimming Team alongside World Championship swimmers such as Liam Tancock and Joanne Jackson. W&S would like to wish Jo-Jo the best in her campaign to compete in the 2012 Paralympic Games and congratulate her on her win at the Rochford Award Ceremony, you can find out more about Jo-Jo here on her website.
Pictured below is Jo-Jo collecting her award from Chairman of Rochford Council, Simon Smith and Jeff Stanton of Waters & Stanton.
I like to spend my half term holidays helping others. This half term I was a PE assistant for Mr Funa at The Westborough School in my hometown of Westcliff-on-Sea.
The photo above is of myself and Sir Mike Jackson MBE from The Presidents Sporting Club with one of Westborough’s PE teachers Mr Funa and some year 2 children.
Sir Mike Jackson MBE had just presented me with a donation towards my Paralympic dream.
PARALYMPIC-champion Danny Crates and Commonwealth quadruple-medalist James Huckle handed out the prizes to the cream of local talent at the 2010 Southend Sports Awards.
Crates, an 800m gold medallist, and Huckle, who won two silver and two bronze in Delhi, presented the prizes at the Clifs Pavilion on Monday evening.
The annual ceremony recognises the sporting achievements of individuals over the last year and can lead to a nomination for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year event.
Canvey Island Swimming Club’s Sophie Drake confirmed her London 2012 aspirations by picking up the Olympic Hopeful award. The Corringham teenager just pipped boxer Yohan Fonseca, and cyclist George Pearl.
And it was a great night for Westcliff’s swimming sensation Jo-Jo Cranfield as she won the Paralympic Hopeful award.
Jo-Jo also came third in the Young Sports Personality of the Year category, which was won by judo player Charlotte Newbold, with George Pearl in second.
And Jo-Jo came second in the Young Community Volunteer category, ahead of Hannah Verlander (cricket), but behind Daniel Blewett (football).
The 3rd Annual Rochford District Sports Awardstook place on Monday 11th October at the Freight House in Rochford, and once again Waters & Stanton were proud to be sponsoring the ‘Disability Sports Personality of the Year Award’. Guest of honor this year was Paralympic gold medal winning athlete Danny Crates from Maldon.
Swimmer Jo-Jo Cranfield this year won the ‘Disability Sports Personality of the Year‘ for her acheivements in the field. At the DSE Short Course Junior Nationals 2010 held in Sheffield in March she won Silver in 200m Butterfly, Bronze in 400m Freestyle, and Silver in 100m Breaststroke. She also competed in the British International Disability Championships 2010 also in Sheffield in April and the British Gas ASA National Championships 2010/Commonwealth Trials in Sunderland in August. Jo-Jo attends the prestigious Millfield School in Somerset with the aim of competing in the 2012 Paralympic Games in London. W&S would like to wish Jo-Jo the best in her campaign and congratulate her on her win at the Rochford Award Ceremony.
Unfortunately Jo-Jo was unable to attend the ceremony due to swimming commitments so her brother (James Cranfield B.Sc (hons)) collected the award on her behalf. He is pictured below collecting the award from Cllr Derrick Stansby (Chairman of Rochford District Council), Jeff Stanton and Danny Crates. On the far right is a picture of Jeff Stanton with Jo-Jo Cranfield at last year’s awards.
I first visitedSheringham Junior School, Manor Park, London as an inspirational speaker in 2008, where I met some very excited, interesting and enthusiastic children.
I was invited back for a visit to speak and to catch up with the children. It was lovely speaking with all of the children and finding out what progress they had all made. It meant a lot to me to know that the children remembered me from my first visit and a few of them had listened to some advice I had given about getting up early for School and to try to eat the correct types of foods, some of them said that they had joined all sorts of sports clubs since my last visit, I had a wonderful day, and I look forward to seeing them all again in the future.
I was invited to help out at The Westborough School in my hometown of Westcliff-on-Sea, for their annual sports week. All the children showed lots of sporting potential I hope I inspired them to take their sports further. I look forward to returning and seeing their progress in the near future. I enjoyed meeting lots of keen and interested children.
♥ Jo-Jo was invited to Garons Sports & Tennis Centre in Southend-on-Sea Essex, to give a motivational talk to some gifted & talented children, run by Southend Sports Patnership.
With the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games edging ever closer, 100 looked after children were given a taste of the Olympic Games at Essex County Council’s Danbury Outdoor Education Centre this week.
The children, a mix of able-bodied, physically disabled and learning disabled youngsters, were all at the Centre as part of the a five-day summer camp for children looked after by Essex County Council.
The group were delighted by the visit of Jo-Jo Cranfield, a Team GB disabled swimmer, who told them first hand about her hopes for competing in the Paralympic Games in 2012 and how sport has helped her to overcome adversity in her own life. She appealed to the young people in the group to take inspiration from her story and to achieve their own ambitions and dreams.
The children were then given the opportunity to take part in a range of Olympic and Paralympic sports including sitting volleyball, table tennis, rhythmic gymnastics, zone hockey and track and field events.
County Councillor Colin Riley, Chairman of the Corporate Parenting Panel said: “This has been a fantastic week for the youngsters involved, giving them the opportunity to enjoy sports and activities they wouldn’t have otherwise have had the opportunity to try.”
County Councillor Stephen Castle, Cabinet Member for Education and the 2012 Games added: “Whether they aspire to be a future Olympic or Paralympic Champion or not, we hope this event has shown the young people involved the positive impact that sport and active lifestyles can have upon their lives.”
This report can be found on the >>>Essex Legacy<<< website
July 1stGosh where do I start. I was asked to present medals at two different swimming galas. The first being in the morning for Rochford District Inter-Schools Annual Swimming Gala. I had a great time and saw some fantastic young swimmers I was happy to help out.
Here is a picture of me with Jordan Kemp a young Rochford & Disrict Swimmer.
In the afternoon I had only 30 minutes to grab a bit of lunch before going to my next booking to present some more medals & trophies for Southend Sports Partnerships Inter-Schools Gala, again I was glad to help out.
Phew !I have had a grand day so far, but I was running out of time I needed to have my nails done do my hair and get ready for Belfairs School Prom at La Quinta in Benfleet, Essex.
♥ Jo-Jo was invited to Southend High School for Girls, in Southend-on-Sea Essex, to give an inspirational talk to some gifted & talented children, run by Southend Sports Patnership.
As an Essex Ambassador Jo-Jo was invited to be a keynote speaker at the launch of UpStarts.
Upstarts Project (Building a Healthy Lifestyle Legacy from the 2012 Games) Upstarts is a fully funded ‘Olympic Style’ food and fitness programme, in the Mid Essex area. The project is funded by NHS Mid Essex and managed by Healthy Solutions Community Interest Company (HLS CIC). The project gives young people the experience of an elite athlete in terms of support to become active, reaching their potential, developing confidence and improving health and well being through cooking and healthy eating. The project was officially launched on Monday 27 April at an Olympic style road show at St Peter’s School Burnham on Crouch. The road show featured an elite athlete (Jo-Jo), 2012 Essex Ambassador and Olympian Steve Cram MBE, University of Essex , Ashlyn’s Organics and Colchester United sports coaches. Children took part in activities and quizzes, tried and tasted foods and learnt what takes to become an Olympian/Paralympian.
I was invited to give talks to the children at Sheringham Junior School, Manor Park, London. I had a wonderful day, meeting lots of interesting and enthusiastic children.
