Mercy Brown to attend glittering ceremony at Madame Tussauds

Tower Hamlets weightlifter Mercy Brown has been nominated for the Balfour Beatty Breakthrough Award when London sport’s unsung heroes will be celebrated alongside some of Britain’s biggest sporting stars at the Balfour Beatty London Youth Games Hall of Fame and Annual Awards (#LYGHOF) evening next month.

Brown broke the British record for the under 75kg class at the London Youth Games and went on to finish fourth in the Commonwealth Games

Stratford’s Copper Box Arena also recieves a nomination in the Community Partner in Association with Sport England category.

The glittering ceremony will take place at Madame Tussauds on Thursday, September 11 and will be hosted by four-time Olympic ski racer Chemmy Alcott and Olympic 100m finalist Jeanette Kwayke, both former participants at Europe’s largest annual youth sports event.

This will be the sixth year of the awards which recognises the contribution of volunteers and participants at grass roots as well as inducting former London Youth Games competitors into the Hall of Fame.

The list of previous inductees reads like a whose who’s who of London sport and includes double Olympic champion Mo Farah, Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins, Paralympic great David Weir, former England football captain Rio Ferdinand, Olympic 100m gold medallist Linford Christie and Olympic and World 400m gold medallist Christine Ohuruogu.

Further names will be added to the Hall of Fame on the evening. London Youth Games Chairman Anthony Kendall said: “It has been yet another incredible year for the alumni of the London Youth Games.

“World Cups, World Championships, European gold medals, Commonwealth gold medals and British records have all been achieved by athletes who began their journey at the London Youth Games.

“But the Balfour Beatty London Youth Games Hall of Fame and Annual Awards (#LYGHOF) is equally about paying tribute to the schools, clubs, coaches and volunteers who inspire the future generations of Londoners to make competitive sport a central part of a healthy, active lifestyle.

“Without them, the London Youth Games could not be the powerful catalyst for activity in every London community and every London school that it is today. Congratulations to all those nominees who have been shortlisted for awards this year and thankyou to everyone who continues to make their contribution in helping us make a real difference to the lives of young Londoners.”

The Balfour Beatty London Youth Games is Europe’s largest annual youth sports event, featuring teams from 33 London boroughs taking part in 85 competitions across 30 sports on 41 event days. Wandsworth collected the Jubilee Trophy as the overall winning borough in 2014.