Celebrations on hold after Cupar man awarded MBE

Bob Dick, head coach at Scottish Disability Bowls, was named in the Queen’s New Year Honours List last week, recognising his decades of work in the sport.

“People have joked about me getting one in the past but I never thought it would happen,” said Bob. “Then it did.

“I’ve had a lot of texts and messages on Facebook. It’s all very positive.”

Bob started playing bowls in the early ‘50s, following in his father’s footsteps, going on to represent Scotland 22 times.

Bob’s first coaching role with the men’s Scotland national team was at the World Championships in 2002, and in 2004 he led them to claim the world title in Ayr.

He also led the Scotland Men’s Disability Triples Team to the gold medal at the Manchester Commonwealth Games in 2002.

Upon returning from the IBD World Championships in Australia in 2007 as head coach for Disability Bowls, Bob vowed to improve the quality and quantity of coaches training and attending major championships with the national team. With more and better qualified coaches working with the team in the run up to the 2011 World Championships in South Africa, the Scotland team came second in the world.

The Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games were also a success for Bob, with his team winning silver in the mixed pairs B2/B3. He was also part of the team at the 2015 World Championships in New Zealand that saw Scotland come second in the medal table, winning six gold medals and four bronze.

“I think my time with Scottish Disability Sport was the most important aspect with me getting the MBE,” Bob said. “You try to make a difference and make good bowlers better. I think it worked.”

Bob does not know when he will collect his MBE and has not been able to celebrate yet because of the lockdown.

“You can’t do anything,” he said. “It would be nice to have a celebration, but it’s on hold at the moment.”

Peter Dawson, former chief executive and secretary at the R&A, has also been awarded a CBE for services to golf.