Jack Montoya of Fulham picked up a prestigious award at the Balfour Beatty London Youth Games Hall of Fame and Awards evening at Lord’s Cricket Ground last week.

The star-studded event saw some of the UK’s most successful sportsmen and sportswomen inducted into the Hall of Fame as well as recognising the achievements of those such 19-year-old Montoya who helped make the 2010 Balfour Beatty London Youth Games the biggest in the event’s history with over 50,000 participants.

Team GB athletics stars Mo Farah, Tasha Danvers and David Weir, Olympic gold medal winning cyclist Bradley Wiggins, England netball legend and England and Man Utd footballer Rio Ferdinand officially joined the Hall of Fame.

All are former London Youth Games competitors, between the six of them they have over 300 international appearances, 13 Olympic or Paralympic medals, 17 World Championship medals, 10 European Championship medals and 5 Commonwealth Games medals.

Farah, Weir, Newton and Danvers were all present on the night to collect their awards in person, whilst Ferdinand and Wiggins both sent videoed messages.

Jack Montoya won the GamesForce Volunteer of the Year Award. GamesForce is the London Youth Games young volunteer scheme.

Montoya gained a Boccia qualification and made a major contribution to the media team as a photographer during the 2010 season. He collected his prize from Olympic 400m champion Christine Ohuruogu and Terry Ryall, Chief Executive of V, the National Young Volunteers Service.

He said: “This award means a lot to me, I don’t know what to say – my heart is beating very fast.

"There are occasions where people say to you that they think you’ve won it, but this time I was unaware of it. It really is fantastic.

"It means a lot because through the London Youth Games I’ve done a lot of things, I’ve gained qualifications and it has open many doors for me.”

Over 400 guests attended the awards, including 2009 inductees and Olympic gold medalists Christine Ohuruogu and Linford Christie, 2012 weightlifting prospect Zoe Smith – who discovered her talent at the London Youth Games – and Hugh Robertson MP, Minister for Sport and the Olympics, who delivered the opening address where he gave his full support to the London Youth Games.

Other winners were the GamesForce Team Leaders who collected the Jubilee Cup, London Basketball who picked up the Community Partner Award in association with Sport England, Keir Apperly of Hackney who won Coach of the Year, Lindsay Sartori who won Volunteer of the Year and Katie Ashton and Gordon Ritchie who were joint winners of the Balfour Beatty Volunteer of the Year award.

The Balfour Beatty London Youth Games is Europe’s largest annual youth sports event with all 33 London boroughs competing in 30 sports across 23 event days.

Hugh Robertson, Minister for Sport & Olympics, said: "The London Youth Games has been the launch pad for many of our top athletes and it is something that we want to build on with our nationwide Olympic-style school sports competition.

"Competitive sport can help us increase participation among young people - one of my top priorities in the run up 2012 – as well as help us unearth sporting talent for the future.”

Russell Findlay, Chief Executive, London Youth Games said: “The London Youth Games are making a huge contribution to the 2012 legacy by increasing the number of young people taking part in competitive sport.

"The opportunity to take part in our London-wide competition is hugely meaningful and motivational to schoolchildren, parents, teachers, coaches, volunteers and everyone else connected with youth sport in the capital.

“Our Hall of Famers speak with unanimous fondness of the opportunity they had to compete against kids from right across London and how the scale of the event has helped prepare them for major competitions in their senior careers.

"Quite simply, the London Youth Games is the catalyst for tens of thousands of young people taking part in competitive sport in the capital.”