A SPORT activist and Berkshire businesswoman has been named in the Queen's New Years Honours List.

Sue Antiss, CEO of Promote PR, has been awarded an MBE in recognition of her unwavering support and dedication to raise the profile of women's sport.

Over the past 25 years, Maidenhead-based Sue has volunteered her time to lead and support a number of local and national charities.

She said: “I was so surprised and incredibly humbled to receive such a prestigious award. I feel hugely honoured to be recognised in this way.

“At times like this, it is natural to think about making your loved ones proud, so receiving this award is slightly tinged with sadness.

"My dad, who was the ultimate sports fan, passed away earlier this year. I know he would have been extraordinarily proud to hear that his daughter had been awarded an MBE.

"It is a great tribute to a man who encouraged his daughter in sport as much as his three sons; someone who recognised ‘great sport is great sport’ whether played by men or women.”

She is currently Chair of Get Berkshire Active, a founding trustee of the Women’s Sport Trust and a non-executive director of the County Sport Partnership Network.

Commenting on Sue’s award, Kate Richardson-Walsh OBE, former GB and England hockey captain, added: “For me Sue is the ultimate inspiration. It is one thing to ‘want’ to make a change for the better. It is an entirely bigger thing to actually make that happen and take action.

“Sue’s passion for grassroots sport is extraordinary. Over the past 25 years she’s been a woman on a mission to get more people playing sport more often.

“Sue’s made a significant contribution to increasing the profile of female sports role models through her work and the time she dedicates as a board member of the Women’s Sport Trust Charity, of which I am a Patron.

"She also generously provides pro bono time of her team at Promote PR to increase media coverage and attract more commercial funding for women’s sport.”