TASS Stars Align For Rising Talent
Table tennis talent Tin-Tin Ho led the way at the 2022 TASS Stars awards as one of the most familiar faces of the Commonwealth Games was named our Athlete Of The Year.
Following a flood of nominations, shortlists were confirmed across five categories highlighting the achievements of athletes spanning the TASS network.
And at a star-studded ceremony in Birmingham — part of this week’s TASS CWG Takeover — the winners were revealed.
Three-time Commonwealth Games medallist and University of Nottingham student Ho, in the midst of a gruelling 2022 games schedule as she chases medals on various fronts, was confirmed as the TASS Athlete Of The Year.
Megan Smithson-Booth (Most Determined Athlete), Jamie Ingram (Most Committed Athlete), Rainbow Mbuangi (Most Inspirational Athlete) and Olivia Holmes (Athlete with the Most Potential) all topped their respective shortlists after impressing an expert panel of judges.
The awards were presented by Georgia Taylor-Brown MBE — fresh from winning Commonwealth Gold and Silver in the mixed relay triathlon and individual event respectively (a repeat of her performance at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics).
2021 TASS Athlete Of The Year Tom Smith — a member of this year’s judging panel — admitted to making some difficult decisions in the face of a raft of talent.
“It was a great experience and a great group to be a part of,” said the accomplished powerlifter.
“It was so good to see so many inspirational athletes excelling in so many different sports and benefitting from the services which TASS offers.
“Deciding each individual award winner was far from easy. It just goes to show the talent and potential that all of these athletes have.
“As a Para athlete I love being able to read about individual and team sports that may not be as big as others.
“They might lack the profile but the level of performance is still incredibly high.
“I would like to congratulate all of the athletes involved in this process and wish them all the best as they continue within their sports.”
Tia-Mai McGarry joined Tom on the TASS Stars panel and the diver echoed the views of her fellow judge.
Tia-Mai was named Most Committed Athlete at the 2020 TASS Stars awards and she added: “All of the athletes have achieved excellence both in and around their sporting careers, which they should be incredibly proud of.
“After a difficult couple of years they deserve immense credit.
“The large amount of entries this year demonstrated the determination of athletes from a variety of different sports — making the selection process very difficult.
“Everyone was so amazing and finding words to describe their talent is almost as difficult as deciding on the winners!”