Charlie Wood
Sport is ingrained in the fabric of the University of Nottingham.
The 2024 Sports University of the Year boasts a proud history of its sporting accolades and prides itself on a competitive, yet inclusive, atmosphere that nurtures incredible athletes and encourages participation.
Beyond academia, the University provides wide-ranging opportunities for students, from rugby to skydiving, hockey to mixed martial arts. Overseeing the 75 sporting societies this year is newly elected Vice-President for Sport, Sami Glover.
During her time as a Nottingham Student, Sami played for the Flag American Football team as well as competing for four IMS Netball teams, captaining her halls side.
Sami took time out of her busy Welcome Week schedule to talk to Impact on her drive for the role, the importance of sport, and her targets for the year ahead.
Sport as Community
Her passion for sport and its immense benefits became evident quickly, explaining how her “eyes have continually been opened to the breadth of sport and how it impacts the world” – a perspective formulated by her exposure to local rugby games and the Olympics from an early age.
She added: “Sport creates a community like no other, whether that be through participating or watching and I think that’s something that I really want to carry with me in this role, bringing everyone together whether you’ve played sport your whole life or have only watched from the sidelines.”
Sami described sport as the highlight of her time at Nottingham and reiterated the positivity it can bring:
“Being part of the American Football team revealed what sport means to people and how it changes their lives as well as how teams can become your family and support network.”
She admitted sport can feel elitist buy emphasised how Nottingham’s culture is different: “I am by no mean an elite athlete, yet I felt welcome to join multiple teams and give anything a try.”
She expanded on the role of UoN Sport on the wider Nottingham community: “I think UoN sport is so much more than sport, and this is where it could really benefit everyone: both students and the public. Sport is about being active, meeting new people, trying something new and helping with mental wellbeing.
“UoN sport also offers opportunities for our students to go out and help in the wider community such as volunteering at food banks and leading sports sessions in schools.”
Her predecessor, James Miller, echoed these sentiments: “It was a privilege to be able to work with our amazing student leaders and together we achieved some lasting change and made a real difference in the community.”
Priorities and Challenges:
Sami ran her campaign on three main pillars of listening, ‘sport for all’, and charitable work. When questioned on which of these would be most challenging, she discussed contextual factors that may hinder ‘sport for all’.
“I think [‘sport for all’] will present some challenges as this includes making sport more financially accessible. Due to the financial climate of the University alongside the cost-of-living crisis, there will be many barriers to overcome along the way.”
However, she was quick to express how ‘sport for all’ would not become merely a slogan.
She said: “At UoN Sport we already have a great participation team who run some brilliant programmes, such as Empower and Black Sport Collective, to instil this idea of ‘sport for all’. I guess my role is to remind them of the student voice, challenge decisions and support them in making this sustainable and strong to be as inclusive and accessible as possible.”
This philosophy is fundamental to how Sami will measure success: “If I can leave this role and know that students and clubs felt supported by me throughout this tough year of change and I have helped sport appeal to a wider student audience then I will feel successful.”
Both Sami and James share a commitment to inclusivity and community impact.
While James celebrated highlights such as “delivering the best Varsity series in recent history” and a “headline football event at Meadow Lane attended by over 4,000 students,” James looked back on his time as Vice President Sport as a success due to initiatives such as Rainbow Laces, Movember and Remembrance Day.
Sami was very complementary of the way James handled the transition period: “I learnt many lessons from James, and he gave me the opportunity to get involved in the role before I even took it over which was really beneficial later down the line. For example, inviting me to varsity meetings and giving me the opportunity to speak at Sports Ball.”
Balancing the Role:
Reflecting on his year, James offered that adaptability was the most important characteristic for a successful tenure as Vice President Sport. “There are so many different student groups and external stakeholders to interact with and as the leader student representative for sport, they need to be able to build those relationships and collaborate effectively.”
Sami built on this point, acknowledging the challenges of short- and long-term priorities in such a fast moving job. “I think being super organised is key to juggling projects and being efficient in prioritising where best to use my time to ensure I am supporting the students as best as possible.”
She also mentioned the strong support system surrounding her: “There is a massive team that I can lean on to help from the other officers, to SU staff, to the sports teams and using this support network is crucial to balancing the demands of VP Sport.”
Advice for Freshers:
Finally, both were united when discussing how freshers should utilise their time at Nottingham.
Sami encouraged branching out: “Be open minded and put yourself out of your comfort zone, take as many opportunities as you can as you never know what will come from it.”
James reaffirmed this point: “Try as many different things as possible. Often it may seem daunting having to make new friends at university but if you go to enough tasters sessions and try enough different sports, you’ll definitely find your place.”
Going forward, Sami faces the challenge of building upon the sporting success overseen by James; keeping Nottingham as a symbol of excellence while remaining a community open to all. Judging by her passion and clear vision, the Green and Gold is in safe hands.
Charlie Wood
Featured image courtesy of UoN Sport. No changes were made to this image.
