New Year’s Honours List…and encouraging aspiration.

I was disappointed when reading the report on Hound and Hound about the New Year’s Honours List that the only comment was a negative one.

“With the odd exception like Claire Lomas and Sam Moorshead, these people have done little or nothing for the good of other people. What are honours for these days - getting your name in the papers? It used to be for public service.” Click hereto read the report and comment.

The two exceptions which the writer refers to have both done charity work, which is, I assume, why they have been excluded from the writer’s blanket condemnation of the other equestrians. While I agree that supporting and raising money for charity is indeed a more obvious service to the public than that of winning medals, it is not the only way to do good deeds.

Any athlete that strives to be at the top of their sport, strives to break records, strives to be a better person than they were yesterday is providing a role model for others. Children emulate their heroes. I would far rather my child followed Charlotte Dujardin as a role model, than a drunken rock star falling out of a nightclub at 2am. All success in sport is driven by attributes that we need in our society – hard work, dedication, perseverance. These are the qualities that we want our citizens to aspire to, to work towards. We need successful role models to provide aspiration for the future.

Sporting achievement both in the able-bodied and para disciplines unites people. As a country we feel part of something during events such as the Olympics and Paralympics. Success in competitions such as the Olympics encourages people to take up sport, and given that exercise is the greatest weapon against mental health, what better way to help others than to encourage more people to participate in sport? If that not doing something “for the good of other people,” then I don’t know what is!