Derby County’s Executive Chairman Mel Morris CBE was honoured at the Derby Telegraph Sports Awards 2019 on Wednesday evening with the Lifetime Achievement Award.
A packed audience at The Roundhouse in Derby heard how, as well as his involvement in Derby County, Mr Morris has spent many years supporting young and upcoming athletes.
The Derby Telegraph Sports Awards 2019 celebrates and rewards the outstanding achievements of Derbyshire’s exceptional sporting successes.
The Lifetime Achievement award, sponsored by Huub, is an accolade for certain individuals whose sustained contribution to Derbyshire sport over many years’ merits special recognition.
Mr Morris received a standing ovation from the audience, who heard how as a ‘huge supporter of our community’ he had donated a huge amount of time and money to healthcare, the prospects of young people and donations to charity, as well as his ownership of Derby County, during which time he had raised standards and ambitions on and off the pitch and ‘delivered one of the finest training grounds in the country’ and teams that had come close to promotion to the Premier League.
Mr Morris said he had always had an interest in helping young people to try harder in life.
“We try and find every opportunity for young people to follow their passion,” he said.
Those he has supported include
tennis player Jay Clarke, ice skater Genevieve Somerville and racing driver
Toby Sowery.
At Derby County, Mr Morris took up a significant minority shareholding within the club and joined as a co-lead investor in May 2014, before purchasing the club outright in September 2015. He had previously been a director at the club in 2006 and 2007.
Mr Morris, who received a CBE in 2017 for services to business and charity, praised his staff, including manager Phillip Cocu and previous manager Frank Lampard, along with Chief Executive Officer Stephen Pearce for the signing of Wayne Rooney, who joins the Rams next month.
During the evening, people of all abilities were recognised, from the amateur and professional arenas.
Mr Morris and Mr Pearce were joined on the night by club ambassador Roger Davies in representing the club, which sponsored the Women in Sport Award, which was won by Cherie Pridham, who is one of very few female team managers in men’s international cycling.