Stoke on Trent College students compete at AoC Sport National Championships
Students from Stoke on Trent College and Hoop Skills Basketball Academy competed at the AoC Sport National Championships in Nottingham last weekend, coming home with second place medals as they helped the West Midlands region to finish in 5th place.
12 students, competing in Basketball, travelled to the University of Nottingham where they battled against athletes from colleges across England and Wales during the three-day event.
On the Sunday, Stoke faced Richard Huish College in the Men’s Basketball Finals. In a tightly contested match. The game was nip and tuck for the 10-minute duration. Richard Huish (5-0) made less mistakes than Stoke and would go on to victory by a score of 18-15. William Ayodele was the stand out player for Stoke on Trent College over the course of the weekend.
As well as individual glory, the teams were aiming to accumulate points for their region and win the prestigious Wilkinson Sword trophy.
Head Coach Shawn Jamison was impressed by Ayodele’s performance and he had this to say: “Rio, Shams, Kai, Ose, Cam, Filip and Pawel should be proud of themselves. They have come a long way in their basketball development and showed it on the big stage. I enjoyed being around this group of guys and I believe that even though we lost these guys won.”
After an intense competition, the South West region were presented winners of the Wilkinson Sword with a total of 140 points, the first time the region has won the coveted title since 2016. Yorkshire and Humber claimed the runners-up sport with 127 points and South East were third place.
More than 1500 students took part in 12 different sports at the University of Nottingham and surrounding areas.
The event was brilliantly supported by 282 staff, 91 colleges, 45 student volunteers, countless officials, not to mention the AoC Sport team.
AoC Sport Director of Sport and Student Experience Dean Hardman said: “It goes without saying that the past two years have been extremely difficult for everyone and especially young people. We were therefore delighted to see the return of the AoC Sport National Championships for the first time since 2019 and the much-needed opportunity for our talented athletes from across the country to compete against each other at this fantastic event.
“Given all the challenges colleges have faced throughout the pandemic, it is outstanding to see so many join us in Nottingham and to see so many students enjoying their sport and its many benefits. It has been a privilege to host them.”
