Joy Alexander Receives the Officials Official Award for 2018

09 April 2019

Joy Alexander Receives the Officials Official Award for 2018

Congratulations to Joy Alexander who has just been announced as the winner of the UKA Officials Official Award for 2018 at the 16th annual UKA Officials Conference, which celebrated the ‘Unsung Heroes of Athletics’.

Joy started in athletics as a schoolgirl, winning titles at the hurdles and ultimately representing her country at that event.  However, when she turned to officiating it was to field events.

Joy is organised, articulate, a clear thinker and best of all she is pleasant and friendly to everyone – a skill not to be underrated in an official. She has been inspirational at local level throughout her officiating career, helping new officials attain the highest standard and encouraging the more experienced to maintain standards and upskill.  She is patient and understanding and always willing to answer questions.

Joy plays a huge role in Officials Education as she is a qualified Officials Tutor and her teaching approach makes trainees feel relaxed and encourages them to continue in athletics. Many of our current field officials have been tutored and mentored by Joy.

She has also taken on committee and management roles throughout the years and has represented Northern Ireland on many UK Athletics Groups. As a committee member Joy works tirelessly to encourage others to help develop our sport.

2019-joyalexanderglasgow.jpgPhoto Credit: Malcolm McCausland

As well as officiating at home, here in Northern Ireland, Joy has been appointed to officiate at many major UK meetings including the Olympic Games, the European Championships and the World Championships.  

Her leadership skills have been recognised by her appointments at major events to management roles such as Field Team Leader, Jury of Appeal, Competition Director and National Technical Delegate.

Joy is a fabulous official and a huge asset to the sport. She is very deserving of this award and we, in Northern Ireland, are extremely proud to have Joy Alexander amongst our ranks.

You can find out more about the Northern Ireland Officials courses here.