Britain’s most decorated Olympian, Sir Chris Hoy, is set to return to Manchester as a guest of honour at the inaugural City of Champions dinner on Saturday 28th September at Manchester Town Hall.The glittering event, hosted by Olympian Diane Modahl on behalf of her Diane Modahl Sports Foundation (DMSF) charity, will celebrate all that is great about Manchester with many sporting icons attending along with aspiring figures from around the city including key business and cultural leaders. Cycling and rowing star, Rebecca Romero MBE, Paralympics coach Paula Dunn and Paralympic swimmer Matt Walker have now confirmed that they will lend their support to the event. Rebecca Romero MBE is the first ever British athlete and only the second woman in history to win medals in two different sports at the summer Olympic Games. It’s a title she earned after rising through the ranks of track cycling and becoming Olympic Champion in 2012. She said: “In my thirteen years training I’ve battled my way up the ranks in two sports so I believe in chasing dreams and never giving up in your relentless quest to be the best. It’s a message I want to share with the next generation and it’s why I am delighted to be attending this event with Diane.”
Paula Dunn will also attend, having just been appointed as the first female head coach of the UK Athletics Paralympic team. The former European and Commonwealth 100m medallist, was also part of the coaching team that helped Paralympics GB finish third at London 2012 and said: “It is important that sporting opportunities are available to all athletes of all abilities and I’m proud to attend events like this where an inclusive agenda is evident. It will be a great night and I am looking forward to seeing so many great people from the world of athletics.” Also joining them is the new IPC World Swimming Champion Matt Walker. Stockport born Matt scooped Gold at the championships last month adding to his career total of 46 international medals, including achieving a bronze medal at his home Paralympics in London 2012. Speaking ahead of the event, Matt said: “I am honoured to be a part of this event and look forward to sharing the room with other athletes and hearing their inspiring stories about how they achieved sporting success.”
COPENHAGEN, DENMARK – MARCH 27: Chris Hoy of Great Britain in action during qualifying for the Men’s Sprint on day four of the UCI Track Cycling World Championships at the Ballerup Super Arena on March 27, 2010 in Copenhagen, Denmark. (Photo by Bryn Lennon/Getty Images)
Also confirmed is popular BBC Sports presenter Dan Walker who will compere the evening, entertaining guests and hosting a live Q&A session with Sir Chris Hoy on the night. He added: “I’m used to commentating on this group of people but this is going to be a completely new environment. This event is all about inspiring the people in the room so I’m looking forward to interviewing Sir Chris and the other sporting stars and provoking them into sharing some great stories which will give the guests goose pimples!” Speaking of the event Diane Modahl said: “The City of Champions dinner is all about celebrating sporting, cultural and business leaders who have an affinity with Manchester and a passion to help us nurture the leaders of the future. It’s synonymous with our core objective at DMSF and I’m thrilled that we have more big names on board to help promote that cause.” City of Champions is the brainchild of Diane who forged her athletics career from her home city of Manchester. She is the founder and CEO of the Diane Modahl Sports Foundation, a registered charity, which gives young people access to world class coaching and coaches. It aims to create further Champions of the future, whether they be in the arena of sport, business, culture, politics or any other. She is especially committed to working with young people and schools in disadvantaged areas. The prestigious event will be hosted by Sir Howard Bernstein, Chief Executive of Manchester City Council, and it is hoped that it will become an annual celebration of the many great Champions the city has developed and nurtured. Sir Howard Bernstein concluded: "As a vibrant and diverse city, Manchester has created and nurtured champions in many different fields. Alongside Diane Modahl, I Iook forward to welcoming these guests to Manchester.” The exclusive event is being sponsored by accountants KPMG and will be invitation only. For details about the DMSF please visit: http://dmsf.co.uk/
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