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BBC News
17 hours ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Former GB ice hockey captain thanks family for MBE
A former Great Britain ice hockey captain who was appointed an MBE in the King's Birthday Honours list has thanked her family for their Lane, from Much Wenlock in Shropshire, won 52 caps for her country and represented Great Britain for 12 years, becoming captain in became interested in the sport when she started going to Telford Tigers games with her brother as a four-year-old and followed him into the 30-year-old, who retired in 2023, said that after some initial misgivings her parents "completely sacrificed their lives to take me up and down the country at silly o'clock" and to support her career. Lane, who was known as Saffron Allen before her marriage to husband Dan last year, said she experienced "shock and confusion" when she received the news about the she was able to tell her parents, she enjoyed letting them open the envelope for were "a few tears and lots of surprise and shock," she said. Lane said there was "always a bit of competition" with her brother and when he began learning to play she asked her parents to join recalled: "I think at the time my mum and dad tried everything to stop me going into ice hockey."But she said she "ground them down" and also began her junior career at made her GB debut in 2011, but the following year suffered a serious spinal injury while playing in China."At the time I was told I wouldn't walk again, definitely wouldn't play again, that was out of the question," she said. 'Very lucky' But within 14 months, she was back in the national team and she believes her perseverance was a "big contributing factor" in getting the she said her parents supported her all the said captaining her country had always been her goal and she was "very lucky to have the honour to do it for numerous years", but in January 2023 she announced her had represented her country at nine World Championship tournaments and three Olympic qualifiers, scoring 18 goals and contributing 20 assistsShe finished with gold at the Women's World Championship Division II Group A in said: "That was the pinnacle and time to step back and enjoy other things in life."Ice Hockey UK CEO Henry Staelens said she had been "a trailblazer for ice hockey in the UK".He added: "Her leadership, work ethic and desire set a huge example to the younger generation [and] made her one of the most important players in GB history." Follow BBC Shropshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
29-05-2025
- General
- BBC News
Olympian Sloan retires from international hockey
Ian Sloan has announced his retirement from international hockey having earned 141 31-year-old from Cookstown in Northern Ireland made 19 appearances for Ireland before making the switch to Great Britain and England in made his Olympic debut in Rio in 2016 when he was just 22-years-old and was one of four players from Northern Ireland in the Team GB squad, joining Iain Lewers, Mark Gleghorne and David with Ames, he went on to make the 2020 squad for Tokyo, featuring in all of Team GB's eleven matches across his two Olympic Games. 'The right time to step away' On his retirement, Sloan told GB Hockey: "I have loved being part of the senior squad but it's the right time to step away. I was in the squad for 10 years which is quite a long stint and in my last few years, I suffered a lot of injuries and, as the gears progressed, I started to get more and more into coaching."He added: "I definitely want to thank my family. My parents got me into the sport and followed me across to England and I have been a huge help in my career and all of my family constantly travelling over from Northern Ireland to support me has made a huge difference."Also, my first club was Cookstown Hockey Club and it was an amazing place to grow up and learn how to play the game and a lot of club members have continued to support me over the years, which I'm very grateful."In 2017 Sloan was named co-captain of GB and England alongside Phil Roper and George Pinner, following his father Martin who captained Ireland 108 the successes he enjoyed as a player, Sloan won bronze medals at the 2017 EuroHockey Championships in Netherlands and at both the 2018 and 2022 Commonwealth would also go on to feature in four FIH Hockey Pro League campaigns since its inaugural season in finished his international career with 67 caps for GB and 74 for England, adding to the 19 he won for Ireland and has now taken up the role of coach developer for England Hockey.
