Prestigious award given to veteran life-saver

His recognition came in the form of the Brian Hockey Award, named after the late ‘Mr Life Saving’.

Even at 88 years old, Mr Allan remains a familiar face in open-water triathlon events.

He had just finished a kayaking stint in the Guernsey Triathlon Club’s recent Vazon Surf Sprint race when Brian Aplin, president of the Guernsey branch of the Royal Life Saving Society, gave him the surprise trophy.

Mr Allan is the father of former Island Games triathlete Gail King and club members praised him on social media as ‘a legend’, ‘a welcome fixture at our races’ and a ‘guardian water angel’.

But Mr Allan remains remarkably humble.

‘My first thoughts are that really this award should have gone posthumously to my late wife Clare, who sadly died in 2010,’ he said in memory of Clare, a very strong swimmer over many years who also boasted myriad achievements in life-saving.

Nowadays, Mr Allan is often the first kayaker to get afloat and the last one to come off the water – he likes to try to catch one more surf wave.

This enthusiasm for kayaking belies his age but reflects his life in outdoor education.

Following national service in the Korean War, he trained as a teacher at Loughborough University and worked in the Lake District at the main outdoor centres and at outward bound centres.

He was then the youth officer for Cornwall and set up many groups with a focus on the great outdoors.

He met Clare (nee Heyworth) as a fellow instructor and she soon became the first female chief examiner of the Surf Life Saving Association of GB.

Mr Allan’s biggest memory in life-saving occurred while organising the National Surf Canoe Championships in Cornwall over 50 years ago.

‘Because of strong winds and huge waves, it proved impossible to get a turnbuoy in position and I foolhardily offered to paddle out myself as the marker,’ he said.

‘Even before any of the competitors had reached me, I was wiped out by an unusually large wave and, although I managed to roll up, my boat had taken in lots of water, so I paddled further out to get beyond the break line.

‘One of the young canoeists from Atlantic College reached me with his boat completely waterlogged so I carried out a classic “T-Rescue” to empty the water, helped him get back in his boat and he then did the same for me and we happily surfed back to the beach together.

‘Very few others had managed to get beyond the break line.’

The couple returned to Guernsey in 1987 and joined the Guernsey Life Saving Club for regular training at the Grammar School pool and open-water swimming at La Vallette. Many of those sessions were led by Mr Hockey, the first pool manager at Beau Sejour.

Hundreds of life-savers gained the Bronze Medallion and Life Guard awards under Mr Hockey’s coaching and the trophy is awarded annually in his memory, most recently to a very deserving Mr Allan.

‘Alex has been ever-present at the open water swims for many years and his patient presence has helped many triathletes complete their challenge even when they have felt it could be beyond them,’ said Mr Aplin.

‘These swims are generally early morning, but Alex is always there.

‘With so many swimmers enjoying local training and events, safety cover by kayakers plays a part in the Revive and Thrive programme as it encourages a sharing of our foremost resource – the sea – at a time when local bays are increasingly crowded.’