The 2014 Sports Industry Coaches and Officials Awards at the Perth Exhibition and Convention Centre honoured the contributions of outstanding coaches and officials.
Mr Thompson, who coaches the national junior, adult and youth teams, provides one-on-one coaching every Tuesday evening at the AMF in Cannington. He has been a coach for 26 years and has also won Ten Pin Bowling Association of Australia’s Coach of the Year award.
‘I played for a lot of years and I just wanted to give something back,’ he said.
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READ NOW‘Just seeing the kids improve, the looks on their faces when they win, that’s why you keep doing it, not for the pats on the back.’
The Sports Industry Coaches and Officials Awards have been held annually since 1999, covering dozens of sports including croquet, football and baseball to netball, cricket, triathlon, swimming and lacrosse.
The Department of Sport and Recreation supported the awards ceremony.
‘Coaches and officials are all too often the unsung heroes of sport,’ acting director general Rob Didcoe said.
‘These people give so much to their teams and their chosen sport but they also contribute to the wider community by setting a good example both on and off the field.
‘We acknowledge the energy, commitment and integrity these people bring to sport and recreation and their local communities.’