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Adlington dives back in: SJA lunch 25Mar

Rebecca Adlington, the first British woman to win an Olympic swimming gold medal for 48 years and the 2008 SJA Sportswoman of the Year, is the Association’s next star guest at a working lunch.

Peter Keen, the performance director at SJA sponsors UK Sport, will also be at our lunch to outline his organisation’s plans for the next four years.

This lunch has now been re-arranged. Please note the revised details: arrive around noon for lunch from 12.30pm on Wednesday, March 25, at Ye Olde Cock Tavern, Fleet Street.

We expect there to be high demand for places, so you are encouraged to contact Mary Fitzhenry promptly to book your place. Priority will be given to SJA members, but guests are welcome to apply, too.

Aged 19 when racing in Beijing, Adlington won the 400 and 800 metres freestyle gold medals, in the latter event breaking a world record that had been held by Janet Evans since before the Briton was born.

By winning two golds at a single Games, the Mansfield-born Adlington became Britain’s most successful Olympic swimmer in 100 years.

In an exceptional year for British sport, her achievement saw her voted as the top British sportswoman of 2008 by SJA members, receiving her award from Princess Anne at our awards in November.

The SJA lunch in London will be one of the few opportunities for the press to meet and interview Adlington before she embarks on a busy competitive summer racing season.


HOW TO BOOK
The SJA lunch will take place at Ye Olde Cock Tavern, 22 Fleet Street. The venue is less than half a mile from Blackfriars, Temple and Chancery Lane Tube stations and City Thameslink rail. Click here for a map of the location.

Places will be allocated on a first-come, first-reserved basis, with preference given to SJA members. The cost is £20 for fully paid-up members, and £25 for non-members, to include a two-course meal.

Members are expected to buy their own drinks.

Payments are to be made on the day to Mary Fitzhenry, by cheque (made payable to the SJA) or cash please.

Contact Mary Fitzhenry by email to mary@spokepromotions.com or by phone on 020 8946 9601 or 07946 545084 (please indicate whether a vegetarian meal is required).

Places must be booked by 10am Monday March 23, or when capacity has been reached.

First posted Jan 29. Amended Mar 1.

Provisional dates of other events in the next few of months include:

March 9: SJA British Sports Journalism Awards, 6.30pm, at The Brewery, Chiswell Street.
Tickets for the awards dinner are £95 for SJA members and £120 for non-members and can be ordered from Start2Finish Events Management. Contact Sandra Phillips by email or telephone 0208 916 2234.

April 16: Andrew Hunt, the new chief executive of the British Olympic Association, meets the press. This date is now confirmed, and the lunch will be staged at Te Olde Cock Tavern. Mary Fitzhenry is taking preliminary bookings.

April 22: SJA annual meeting (12.30pm start), at UK Sport head office, 40 Bernard Street, London WC1N 1ST (nearest Tube: Russell Square). Only SJA members may attend – please contact Steven Downes, SJA Secretary, in advance to confirm your attendance.

May 5: SJA Spring Golf Day, Surrey Downs GC. Email Paul Trow to book your place.

All details are subject to change until confirmed by the SJA, both on this website and via emails to members.

â–¡ UK Sport is the longest standing lead sponsor of the Sports Journalists’ Association, with a partnership that goes back more than a decade. Sky Bet is the SJA’s newest partner, the sponsorship being announced in October 2008.

Both partners support the SJA’s two prestigious annual awards events, including the presentation of a special UK Sport Award for excellence at the SJA’s Annual Sports Awards and the sports betting writer of the year at the SJA’s British Sports Journalism Awards.

The SJA Annual Sports Awards are the longest established of their kind in the United Kingdom, having been first staged in 1949.

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