AT LAST. SPORTS AWARDS THAT GET DOWN

AT LAST.
SPORTS AWARDS THAT GET
DOWN TO EARTH
INTRODUCING …
The Confederation of Australian Sport is
an alliance of the 90 peak Australian sports
bodies. Its charter is to promote the concept
of “sport for all”.
Inside Sport is Australia’s leading sports
magazine, published since 1991, with a goldplated reputation for the integrity and quality
of its journalism and writing.
Together, CAS and Inside Sport have joined
forces to introduce a new set of awards that
recognise the fabulous contributions made
to grassroots sport by the largely volunteer
army of enthusiasts all around the country.
There are plenty of gongs handed out to elite
athletes at the pointy end of professional
competition. Not the Clubbies! The Inside
Sport “Clubbies” recognise the outstanding
achievements of players, coaches and
officials at grassroots club level.
These awards meet the charter of CAS: to
recognise and promote the benefits of clublevel, grassroots sport to this nation’s health
and well-being.
These aren’t your posh black-tie awards
targeting the top end of town – these are “The
Clubbies”, aimed squarely at sport’s heartland.
THE CLUBBIES
CAS and Inside Sport recognise that it’s the grassroots
enthusiasts who are the unsung heroes of this nation’s great
sporting culture.
It’s grassroots sport that is the heartbeat of all Australian
communities, bringing people together in healthy competition, keeping them fit and active, building connections and
friendships. And grassroots sport is driven and populated by
a legion of characters of all ages, shapes and sizes, abilities
and disabilities. By definition, these “legends in their own
backyards” go unrecognised.
Inside Sport wants to put that right. We know there are a
million great stories out there to tell. Let’s shine a light on
these stalwarts and local champions and sing their praises
to the world! We want to find the truly unsung heroes of
Australian sport – and then reward their clubs with great
prizes to improve their services and facilities.
HERE’S HOW IT WORKS
The CAS/Inside Sport Clubbie Awards are open to all teams,
clubs and individuals in Australia.
The awards are announced through A) Inside Sport
magazine and online, and B) CAS member sporting bodies
promote awards through their extensive communication
media to ensure that all registered sports men, women and
children learn of the Clubbies – and what prizes are on offer
to improve services and facilities at their local sports club.
The potential audience target here is measured in the
millions of active Australians with a passion for sport.
Nominations are then made online at www.insidesport.com.
au/clubbies
All nominations go into a draw to win a terrific prize.
Entries include short supporting statements saying why
their colleague/team-mate deserves to win the award.
The Clubbies will be presented in six categories.
1. BEST COACH – Readers/players/club members nominate
a coach who in some wonderful way has gone above and beyond the normal call of volunteerism to make the role their
passion. Nominations will describe their coach’s special
qualities and explain why that coach should be a “winner”.
The winning coaches won’t necessarily be judged on how far
their team went in a competition or how many trophies they
collected in a season. They will be judged on how far their
team came.
2. BEST PLAYER – Readers/players/club members nominate an individual for their exceptional performance during a
season. These nominees may not necessarily have won anything in a competitive sense. But through some outstanding
effort, or action, or “sporting” heroics, they have won the
admiration of their team-mates, friends and family. Tell us
their story – see them recognised for their achievements.
3. BEST STALWART – Every club has at least one. Readers/
club members nominate that club stalwart who takes on the
lion’s share of duties, dedicating themselves to their volunteer role in the club, without a word of complaint or a bad
word about anybody. We all know the type: they’re running
the canteen, marking the lines, emptying the bins. We are
looking for Australia’s standout enthusiast. We want to say
thank you – and put their name in lights!
4. BEST TEAM – What makes a great sporting team? Yes, by
definition there is usually some kind of trophy involved for
winning a competition. But sport is about more than winning
and losing. And being part of a great team is one of the most
special experiences anyone can enjoy. What makes your
team the best? Nominations will cite that team’s history,
their playing record, their fine sporting spirit.
5. BEST CLUB – Readers/club members nominate their own
club for this award. What makes your mob the best? What is
it about your club that makes you so proud to wear their colours? Is it the facilities? The camaraderie? Your dominance
on the field? Your team mates? We want to put YOUR name
in lights, too.
6. BEST SPORTING EDUCATION – Readers/club members
nominate their school or university for the outstanding
quality of their sporting program. How does this educational
facility make sport the best lesson anyone can learn? Let us
find Australia’s best teachers of sport.
VOTING
Once the nominations have been received, Inside Sport’s
editor will reduce entries to a shortlist of 10 finalists
in each category. The announcement of these finalists
will be broadcast again, and the invitation extended for
readers, clubmates, colleagues, friends and family to
go online to VOTE for the winners in each category. ALL
votes go into a draw to win a terrific prize.
Winners will be decided by:
1. The weight of votes making up 40 percent of judging
criteria.
2. The quality of achievements of our winners, as lodged
by the nominees, as judged by the Awards Executive
Committee. This will be headed by the Inside Sport
editor, and be comprised of a select panel of sporting
luminaries with a special passion for grassroots sport.
This multi-platform initiative consists of:
1. A print campaign through nextmedia’s portfolio of
sport-related titles.
2. A digital campaign across all of nextmedia’s web/
mobile and social media sport outlets.
3. A digital HUB pulling all content together.
4. An awards event hosted in Sydney, announcing the
winners.
5. A wrap-up editorial feature of the whole initiative to
announce winners etc in an issue of Inside Sport.
6. Where nextmedia has properties for specific sports,
and a category winner comes that sport, a dedicated
news piece will appear on that particular award, eg golf
award in Golf Australia.
TIMELINE
July/ August – Nominations
September – Shortlisting
October – Voting
November – Winner Announcement/ Awards Event