12 Jun 2019
Queen’s Birthday Honours for outstanding alumni
Two Loughborough University alumni have been recognised for their contributions to sport in the 2019 Queen’s Birthday Honours list.
Alumna Ama Agbeze (Finance and Management, 2007) has been appointed an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) for services to Netball.
The former England Netball Captain led the team to win gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia. She also holds a bronze Commonwealth Games medal from Melbourne 2006, and she has over 100 caps for the team.
In 2018, the England team were awarded Greatest Sporting Moment of the Year and Team of the Year at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Awards. Individually, Ama has been awarded induction to the England Netball Hall of Fame and won The Royal Navy Sportswoman of the Year Award at the British Ethnic Diversity Sports Awards earlier this year.
As well as captaining England, Ama also played for the Loughborough Lightning side, last representing them in 2018.
Nicholas Sanders (Physical Education and Sports Science, 1982) joins Ama in receiving an MBE. He is recognised for services to Endurance Cycling and Motorcycling. He was the first person to attempt these timed endurance journeys, and many of his challenges have been documented on television.
The alumnus has circumnavigated the world seven times and in 2005, he achieved this in 19 days and four hours on his motorcycle, setting a world record.
He has also held the world record for cycling around the world, which he set at 138 days in 1981, and completed for a second time in 79 days in 1985.
Amongst his other achievements, Nicholas also holds the world record for cycling the coast of Britain in 22 days.
Congratulations to Ama and Nicholas on their achievements and recognition.