Joanne today presented an award at the London Tigers’ annual awards ceremony. She delighted the audience by revealing that the Conservative Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, had agreed to act as the Tigers’ Honorary Patron.
Founded in Church Street in 1986, The London Tigers now run 22 football teams from youth level all the way up to semi-professional. They also provide encouragement, facilities and training for young people to participate in a wide variety of other sports as well as acting as a focal point for talent development programmes in the run up to the 2012 Olympics.
Much more than a sporting organisation, the London Tigers now work across 6 boroughs and have 1,200 members, representing more than 60 different nationalities.
They offer employment support and have provided the impetus and training for a number of their members to forge successful careers in sport, youth-work, etc. They have also set up health awareness programmes in Camden and Westminster for young people living in these areas.
Joanne, was proud to be presenting an award at the London Tigers presentation evening:
“It is hard to imagine that, just 22 years ago, the Tigers started life as a solitary Bangladeshi Football Team in Church Street.
After more than two decades of hard work and sacrifice, Mesba and his team now have a vital role to play in London. They provide real solutions to real problems and their achievements are, quite rightly, a source of tremendous pride within our local community.
The Tigers engage with young people outside of the school environment and provide them with the opportunity to excel in sport, in education and ultimately in life.
It was a great honour for me to be asked to present an award this evening and to help the Tigers celebrate all that they have achieved in the past year. I would like to offer my congratulations to everyone involved in this fantastic organisation and especially to all those who won prizes this evening.”
Boris Johnson, the Tigers’ new Honorary Patron, and the Conservative Mayor of London, also voiced his support for the Tigers:
"London Tigers do a fantastic job of encouraging kids to get involved in sport, teaching them discipline and teamwork and I hope encouraging tons of kids from across London to get fit and ready for the 2012 Olympics where we are going to need the biggest and the best team ever
And I just want to say, as someone who spends his time in the mornings jogging very very slowly through the streets of London, to the theme song ‘Eye of the Tiger’, what a proud moment it is for me to be an Honorary Patron of the London Tigers."
