Some very well deserving athletes, coaches and supporters are about to be recognized for their hard work and efforts in the world of sport.

The Red Deer Community Sports Awards showcase happens March 27th and I was lucky enough to be a part of the selection process for the winners of these awards.

What struck me as we made our way through the nominations, backed up by information about the nominees, was the amount and diversity of talent we have in this community.

We had athletes from football, volleyball, swimming, speed skating, synchro swimming and power lifting.

In addition to the main sports these young men and women play is the fact they seem to be able to do well in other sports.

To me, this just underlines what a well-rounded athlete is and it hasn’t changed over the years as time and time again we see the winners specialize in one sport but those same names come up in connection to other sports.

Another component of these awards are the officials who try to keep things in check and the volunteers who spend truckloads of time either coaching or working behind the scenes.

If not for these two groups, the athletes will still shine but maybe not as bright.

When we watch sports we do marvel at the dedication and commitment of those on the court, the ice, the field or in the pool.

What many of us miss is the level of effort made by the officials and volunteers to do their very best in whatever sport they are involved with.

So even if you don’t have a child winning an award at this function it would be nice if you grabbed a ticket and checked out some of the up and coming athletes, coaches, volunteers and officials in our community.

That is a nice way to show support.

Tickets are $30 and can be picked up at the Recreation Centre.

sports@reddeerexpress.com