Eastbourne man recognised on New Year’s Honours List

An Eastbourne man was awarded a CBE in the New Year’s Honours List.

Nick Webborn, who is the chair of the British Paralympics Association (BPA) and a clinical professor at the University of Brighton, was given the title because of his service to sport and sports medicine.

The Eastbourne man, who was also awarded an OBE in 2016, said, “For me there are two elements to it, there is the contribution to sport for my work with the BPA, but also my contribution to sports medication - the academic side and the work that I have done at the University of Brighton in leading research into Paralympic sports medicine across the world. It is lovely to have that dual recognition in the nomination.

“It’s a really strange thing when you get it. Honoured is really the word because it is such a great privilege and I recognise it is for the work I have done but you are never alone in these sorts of things.

“Although it is a personal award, it does also reflect on all those other organisations.

“The hardest thing is keeping it quiet. You are given this letter in strict confidence and then it is released at 10.30pm on New Year’s Eve.

“For me it was really hard emotionally because I spent time with them [my family] over Christmas, but not being able to tell them was really difficult.

“[It was] quite challenging because you want to celebrate and I am sure we will get together and celebrate it in due course when time and covid permits.”

Mr Webborn, who moved to Eastbourne 35 years ago, also reflected on the 2020 Paralympic Games – which took place in 2021 – as he helped guide the nation to second in the medal table.

He said, “Great Britain has been a successful nation across it but I think more pride was with the medals across so many sports. More than any other nation has ever done before.

“Winning medals across so many different sports shows the breadth and the depth of the expertise and the quality of athletes we have in Great Britain and I think that is really found in the belief that we have in Paralympic sports in Great Britain.

“We feel this deep commitment to it as a nation and that was really embedded in London 2012.

“We really understood how Paralympic sport could change attitudes to disabilities as well as showing exceptional sporting performance.”

Mr Webborn also discussed the issues he had to navigate due to the pandemic.

He said, “It is very difficult for the athletes in terms of their preparations and training. Obviously there was a large degree of uncertainty.

“With the Olympics taking place beforehand, that was either going to show that the precautions that they put in place had worked, or it would end up being a ‘super spreader’ event and they would cancel the Paralympics.

“For the athletes it was hugely stressful, but to go out there and for the athletes to perform as they did was fantastic.”

Mr Webborn also explained how he set up a covid sub-committee in the summer to look at how the virus could affect athletes while advising the International Paralympic Committee.

He said, “Obviously Olympic athletes are generally healthy, don’t have existing health conditions, but you are bringing in 4,500 people from around the world with a variety of conditions which would put them in the susceptible group.

“You want to ensure that it is a really safe environment. Inputting that element was critical.”