ICONINC COMPETITION RECOGNISES LEEDS’ MOST INSPIRING STUDENTS


Five Remarkable Leeds Students Announced as Finalists in Leeds’ Student Icon 2015 Competition

Five inspiring Leeds’ students have been announced as finalists in the Leeds’ Student Icon 2015 competition, handpicked from hundreds of students vying for an opportunity to win a once in a lifetime opportunity to live in luxury at the new IconInc development in Leeds.

Leeds’ students entered in their hundreds to shout about why they deserve to be crowned Leeds’ Student Icon 2015 and win a year’s tenancy including utility bills with IconInc in a luxury apartment in the brand new The Edge, worth £7,000.

The worthy finalists were picked after much deliberation by a panel of judges, including Made in Leeds TV Presenter Beth Krysta Wilson, Izzie Thomas from Leeds Student Radio, former Leeds student and GB Hockey Olympic Bronze Medallist Ashleigh Ball, and Naveen Ahmed, Managing Director of Parklane Group, the company that manages IconInc.

Amongst the finalists are:

•    Actor, musician and activist, Cris Haris, an ambitious Leeds University student, who has starred in over 30 films, TV series, commercials and plays.
•    Passionate Leeds Beckett journalism student, Natasha Pilling, who is taking the student voice to the masses and whose charity work and fundraising stood out from the crowd.
•    Aru Patel, the creative butterfly of the competition. As well as a flair for design and dancing competitively, Aru speaks an extraordinary 6 languages.
•    The fourth finalist, Abdi Hassan, is Leeds’ answer to Bond’s Q. Abdi, a computing wiz and a fantastic representative for his course, he was awarded Course Representative of the Year.
•    Last but not least is Joel Murphy – proof that nothing is impossible if you put your heart and soul into it. Joel uses his exceptional teaching skills to help others learn, including underprivileged children. He aims to be influential in the field of education. He also supports charities, running marathons for his chosen charity, AMMF.

Ashleigh Ball, former Leeds student and GB Hockey Olympic Bronze Medallist and competition judge, explains; “Picking just five finalists has been a real challenge as we received such a high standard of entries, from charity workers and fundraisers to those proactive in university clubs and societies. It’s been an absolute pleasure to uncover and recognise so many remarkable individuals, doing worthwhile and selfless things and showing extraordinary ambition and determination.

“It is sad to say, but the student community unfortunately isn’t always portrayed in the best light, and it’s wonderful to be able to celebrate the great and good amongst Leeds’ students. Now it is in the hands of Leeds’ residents to choose their Student Icon, and we hope many people will vote for who they feel is the most deserving winner!”

Follow us on Twitter @iconinc_uk and use the hashtag #LeedsStudentIcon to find out about our icons-in-the-running and share suggestions on who you think deserves to be crowned Leeds Student Icon. To vote, please visit http://www.iconinc.co.uk/vote-now/ and find out more about the finalists.