A successful year for sport at Imperial

As we reflect on the year gone by, the ACC has a lot it can be proud of. In terms of sporting achievement, this looks set to be a record year for our performance in BUCS, not to mention the successes of clubs competing outside of BUCS.

The Judo Club brought four bronze medals and a gold back from their championships. Baseball won the Southern Championship and the Fall Cup, establishing themselves as a formidable team in the region. Football came second in the ULU League and won the ULU Cup, and the water polo teams have variously won their leagues, reached their finals and gained promotion, including the mixed team being crowned champions of the London League.

Dance have also been very successful. Special mention goes to Arman Sahovic, who came first and second in the National University Latin and Ballroom competitions respectively, the first dancer in the university circuit ever to do so. Boat have brought record numbers of medals home, with victories in all classes. At the BUCS 4s and 8s Heads, they won four golds, two silvers and four bronzes, earning second place overall and more than 100 BUCS points.

The greatest success this year has come from Imperial’s Fencers. Both the men’s and women’s teams were undefeated throughout the season, winning the league and having their best season so far. Furthermore, having won silver at last year’s BUCS Championships, they went one better and won double gold, finding themselves crowned as the best fencing team in the country. Their star players, Hannah Bryars and Maiyuran Ratneswaran (Sportsperson of the Year) are both members of the GB Olympic team, and Maiyuran is a gold- and silver-medal winner at the Commonwealth Games. In addition, Alice Mitchell, who lead the women’s team to victory, also won a bronze medal in Judo on the same weekend.

The ACC has also had a great year off the pitch. We have run four very successful ACC Bar Nights. These have raised money that goes straight back to the ACC so that it can help support the activities of its many clubs, which are upwards of 50 now, not to mention the obvious relief from the stresses of academic life they provide.

We were sorry to say goodbye to Alissa Ayling in the early part of the year. Her role was key in facilitating the partnership of the Union and Sport Imperial, and has helped our clubs to climb ever greater heights. Fortunately, Hannah Blandford has filled the role with great skill, and we look forward to working closely with her in the coming years.

The ACC is set to have an all new committee next year, with Henry Abbot and Phil Sandwell taking the reins as Chair and Treasurer. The current committee is moving on, with some graduating, and some moving on to Sabbatical positions in the Union. So if anything does go wrong, we’ll be watching.

A final note of thanks has to go to the members of all our ACC clubs. It seems facetious to say, but without them, the ACC would not be where it is now. Special thanks go to all the club committee members for their continual dedication to their clubs throughout the year, allowing their players to be able to do what they do best: play and win. We hope all our members have a fantastic summer, and wish them all the best.