Fans to choose IWRF World Championships’ best player

For the first time in the history of the International Wheelchair Rugby Federation (IWRF) World Championships, which are currently being held in Odense, Denmark, fans can vote for the award of the best player of the tournament.

Representing the spectator’s point of view, fans can nominate and vote for players online, and a special trophy will be presented to the winner at the closing banquet on Sunday (10 August).

Through live and on-demand streaming, everyone with an internet connection has been able to follow the 2014 IWRF World Championship.

Now, the Danish organising committee (LOC) has launched the Fans’ Best Player Award, and the winner will be determined entirely by the fans’ online voting.

“We want to take spectator involvement to the next level, which is why we have launched this award,” says Mette Holstein Arnesen, Event Chairperson.

“The opinion of the passionate viewer at home is just as important as that of any expert, so we felt like there had to be an award for the fans to hand out.”

USA players Chuck Aoki and Joe Delagrave are excited about the new award.

“It’s a great idea, and it would obviously mean a lot to win it. I think it’s the first time it’s been done in wheelchair rugby, so it’ll be really interesting to see how the fans vote,” says Aoki.

This view was echoed by his compatriot, Delagrave, adding: “I’m very excited about the fan award. Vote Joe!”

Fans can nominate players for the award using the hashtag #odense2014mvp and the name of the nominee on Facebook and Twitter for the duration of the tournament, and voting will begin on Saturday (9 August) morning and last until the gold medal match is over.

The Local Organising Committee will manage the vote and will add new nominees throughout the weekend.

To ensure that your favourite player is included, visit the Twitter and Facebook page to nominate your player of the tournaments.