Inspirational England and Great Britain striker Sam Ward – who suffered a career threatening eye injury in 2019 – was revealed as the recipient of the Super Fair Play Trophy René G Frank at the FIH Awards on Friday.

It comes in recognition of his perseverance, dedication, and energy not only in his own recovery but also raising awareness of mental health issues and even volunteering his time to deliver food and medicines to his local community and supporting a young leukaemia patient, Alfie.

Also at the awards, the Guust Lathouwers Memorial Trophy – for an individual who has made a significant mark on the development of umpiring – went to Croatia’s Ivona Makar, who was described as an outstanding umpire with a very bright future ahead of her.

The Polish Hockey Association, picked up the Theo Ikema Award thanks to various hockey development projects resulting in 30 newly trained coaches and over 3000 schoolchildren being introduced to the sport within the country.