Stratford's Alex Rochas has been shortlisted for the High Performance Coach of the Year award by UK Coaching.

This nomination comes ahead of the 25th annual awards, where coaches nationwide are recognised for their incredible contribution in transforming the lives and communities across their sport.

As performance coach at the British Diving Performance Centre at London Aquatics Centre, Rochas has supported his divers to amass an incredible 21 medals between them across World Championships, European Championships and Commonwealth Games, including seven golds.

He was previously head coach for Plymouth Diving and head coach at the National Elite Training Centre in Paris, during which time he led France to a fourth-place finish in the men’s 10m platform at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.

When told he had been named as a finalist, Rochas said: “I’m very honoured to have been nominated for a UK Coaching Award, however it was a surprise! It feels good to be recognised for the sheer amount of work, effort and sacrifice it takes to work in performance sport.

"It is great to feel supported by such a well-known programme like UK Coaching. I really enjoy helping, guiding and supporting athletes to achieve the best they can be throughout their journey. I would describe success as an adventure, with lots of ups and down, it must be a passionate journey!”

The awards are a showpiece event, seen as one of the most prestigious within the coaching community, and 25 years ago, they were created to recognise the remarkable contributions coaches make – from delivering high quality and technical coaching, to supporting participants physically and mentally.

UK Coaching’s chief executive Mark Gannon congratulated Rochas on his nomination and reflected on the huge variety of coaching talent, adding: "We are delighted to announce our finalists for the 25th UK Coaching Awards. From over 350 nominations – a staggering amount – this year the bar has been raised once again, and whilst we are fully aware of the power of coaching, our brilliant coaching workforce continues to surprise us and change lives and communities.

“It is so important we acknowledge and thank our coaches as they work tirelessly to support more people into physical activity and sport across all levels - to help build communities, tackle inequalities and inspire people to be the best they can be, whatever their aspirations.”

The awards will be held on December 6 at the Queens Hotel in Leeds. See ukcoaching.org/uk-coaching-awards for more details.