Green Sport Awards nominees announced

The BBC Green Sport Awards return to highlight the people and organisations who are determined to make a real difference to sustainability in sport.

On Monday, October 6 at the BBC’s Broadcasting House, awards will be presented to those who are determined to change to improve the world through sport.

Fran Kirby

Fran Kirby, a footballer from Brighton and England, and World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) collaborated on a book titled “Prescription for Nature” earlier this year to discuss how nature has improved her mental well-being.

A European Championship winner in 2022, the 32-year-old has chosen to use her enhanced profile and following on social media to speak up on issues of climate change, focusing on the positive impacts nature can have on us all.

“It’s about calming me down when I’m out in nature.” It’s about having the ability to refocus, shift my perspective, and reset,” she said.

Hannah Mills

The two-time Olympic sailing champion has consistently been a voice for sustainability issues.

She backed the Challenge 6, 000 campaign, which aimed to get rid of 6, 000 pieces of litter from the ocean as she got ready for the rescheduled Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

This year, the 37-year-old spearheaded an open letter before the International Olympic Committee’s presidential elections in March that encouraged bold climate leadership. More than 450 athletes signed it.

Hector Pardoe

An Olympic open-water swimmer, Pardoe often encounters first-hand polluted waters, which he says have caused him and his team-mates to become unwell on numerous occasions.

Pardoe, 24, describes himself as a plant-based athlete and frequently uses his social media platform to discuss issues involving water quality.

Hector Bellerin

Former Arsenal footballer Hector Bellerin is one of the highest-profile footballers to use their significant platform and voice to talk about sustainability.

The 30-year-old is now a member of Real Betis’ non-profit sustainability program Forever Green and serves as its chief ambassador.

Bellerin’s clothing reflects this passion for sustainability. Last year, he released his own clothing brand, which works with deadstock materials to reduce waste.

He has spoken out critical about the plans Fifa, football’s world governing body, has for the 2030 World Cup, and has previously started an initiative to plant 3, 000 trees in the Amazon for every victory his team won while playing for Arsenal.

Bellerin served as an ambassador for Green Football’s Great Save campaign earlier this year and was included in National Geographic’s 33 for 2025 list.

Jessie Diggins

The most successful American cross-country skier of all time, Jessie Diggins has won three medals at the Olympics and seven at World Championships.

At the World Championships in April 2025, Diggins and her American team-mates wore special-edition ski suits that depicted a melting ice cap as a way to raise awareness of global warming.

The 34-year-old has devoted her platform on social media to raising awareness about climate change, with consistent public speaking through interviews and media appearances, discussing the effects global warming has on snow sports.

Sebastian Vettel

Sebastian Vettel, a four-time Formula 1 champion, is making strides toward leaving behind his own racing legacy.

Since retiring, Vettel has taken on many projects – big and small.

He founded a symbolic project that combines his racing background with his environmental passion at the Suzuka F1 circuit in Japan in 2023. In his native Germany, that first bee sanctuary has now grown to a bee meadow.

During the 2022 season, he stopped travelling to grands prix by plane, instead choosing to drive to as many of the circuits as he could to avoid taking internal European flights.

The 38-year-old has focused his attention on what is happening in the Amazon rainforest, one of the world’s most endangered ecosystems, in the past 12 months.

He traveled to the Kayapo tribe, an indigenous tribe that resides in the Amazon and is dependent on it. By highlighting this, Vettel is bringing many new eyes to the devastating effects of deforestation.

Sofie Junge Pedersen

Sofie Junge Pedersen, a Danish football player, has a long history of inspiring environmental activism, and the Guardian named her the year’s footballer of the year for her efforts in this field last year.

When playing for Inter Milan, she persuaded the team to not fly to matches in the 18 months she was there.

The 33-year-old has a long history of support for environmentalism.

Arsenal

The first Premier League team to sign up for the UN Sports for Climate Action Framework has the goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2040.

Renewable energy is used to power all of their websites, including Emirates Stadium. Their 3mw mega battery enables them to avoid relying on the grid during peak times and to store clean energy for use on matchdays. They are also significantly lessening the number of disposable cups used on matchdays and are now using the stadium’s sixth season.

Additionally, they have installed a water recycling facility at their training facility, which can store up to 20 million litres of water annually.

In May, they trialled a code for their supporters to claim a discount on their rail travel to an away match in Liverpool. To help the team and supporters reduce their carbon footprint while traveling, they have also planted trees in the UK and at the Arsenal forest in Kenya.

Formula E

Formula E has been net zero since day one of its first season in 2014. It was the first sport to be included in the UN Sports for Climate Action Framework and the first to be recognized for managing events sustainably.

Carbon fiber and natural rubber are the components of the Gen 3 Race car, which are entirely recyclable.

In January, Formula E introduced a new feature at select races throughout the season called pit boost – an electric vehicle recharging technology that delivers a 10% energy increase via a 30-second, 600kW charge in the pit lane – advancements made for the track that could benefit everyday electric vehicles around the world for widespread consumer use.

Jog On

Tony Piedade founded Jogging Buddy, a free platform for people to join together for a run or walk, in 2009, but he realized that if he encouraged others to do so, there might be more trainers going to the landfill.

Jog On distributes usable shoes to schools, charities and organisations in the UK, Africa and South America. According to Paidade, “Trainers that can’t be reused undergo a certified process to keep them out of landfill and are incinerated to create electricity.”

The organization announced that 40 million tonnes of shoes had been saved from landfill since it launched its campaign in July 2025, marking a milestone for the organization.

With the support of the Outdoor Industries Association, Jog On is now looking to extend its remit to walking boots and shoes.

Sport England

Every Move, Sport England’s first environmental sustainability strategy, required that all of its 130 partners, including national sport governing bodies, have robust sustainability plans in place by March 2027 as a prerequisite for funding.

This summer, Sport England went even further – allocating £16m from its Movement Fund exclusively to support green sport initiatives. Applications for grants ranging from £300 to £15,000 are encouraged for community sports clubs and physical activity organizations that want to improve their environmental credentials.

London Marathon

The London Marathon has long led the way on sustainability issues, introducing many initiatives to raceday itself to offset the impact of 50, 000 runners and more than a million supporters crowding into London for the race.