2025 Global Excellence Award Winner: Paul Siddens

Paul Siddens, United Kingdom

Nominated for: Pioneer of the Championship Mentor program, contributing to the development and success of the program from its inception.

One of the recipients of our 2025 Global Excellence Awards this year was Paul Siddens (and his bowler hat!).

Paul’s standout contribution to the Professor Program began when he stepped into the role of Championship Mentor. Paul cemented himself as a pillar of the program, always there to help with passion and patience while the Professor Program team worked toward a uniform implementation of the Mentor team at every International and World Championships event. His efforts contributed enormously to shaping the philosophy you can see represented by those Championship Mentor program aims that we strive to achieve every time a team comes together to support an event.

Every Mentor has a different style, and one of Paul’s primary tactics was to elicit a smile from someone before they were even aware that an interaction was occurring. He used his signature bowler hat and Electrode plush to draw his Professor colleagues out from the aftermath of a tense moment, leaving hearts lightened and minds receptive to the careful feedback for which he became so well-known.

Usually we like to interview each of our Global Excellence Award recipients. Their Professor journeys are often quite remarkable, and not only do we ourselves (the Professor Program team) love to learn more about those who’ve been so deeply involved in the success of our program, but we also feel it’s important to celebrate these Professors and share their stories with you, our community.

However, Paul sadly passed away in 2025, and so we’d like to paint a picture of his character through the memories of just a few of the Professors with whom he forged a special connection during his time as a Championship Mentor, League Owner, Judge, and friend.

“I was fortunate to share events with Paul many times for nearly a decade…his calm yet playful personality resulted in countless good moments and memories together. So playful that he was regularly kept away from the microphone for making things a little too fun! Passing him when walking through the venue was enough to trigger a joyful interaction, and Paul was universally like this towards anybody in his proximity. He played a fundamental role in the personal development of many Professors across our global community. There’s much we could each learn from his approach towards events. We’re blessed to have Paul as part of our story, and I’m incredibly grateful to have met him.”

—Jamie Barr, RPC for United Kingdom & Ireland

“I was privileged to spend so much time with him… He had a sharp wit that made me laugh so much. But the really special thing about Paul was his thoughtful and eloquent written feedback. I treasure those words. He truly took time to make everyone feel seen and heard. I recently came across a pin I made for the first EUIC, and it immediately reminded me of Paul. I’ll carry his memory and mentorship with me everywhere and try to do him proud always.”

—Jen Badamo, VG Championship Mentor

“As a Mentor, my favourite memory is from the event [for which] I was TCG lead for the first time on my own. I’d spoken to Paul about how nervous I was, about the big step and the huge responsibility. He made me talk through all the people who were there to support and help if needed. He said he would be there every step of the way. He was. He checked in constantly, reassuring me that it was going well. He kept saying, ‘You’ve got this.’ He was always very quiet in his support and presence.”

—Tracy Toulmin, Hive Championship Mentor

“[He was] a really warm and friendly person, well suited to the Mentor role he was picked for. I really miss him, and it seems strange not to see him and his traditional bowler hat proudly striding among the VG players.”

—Nigel Edney, TCG Championship Mentor, former RPC for United Kingdom & Ireland

“My first time mentoring was with Paul. It was probably the most nervous I had been for a role, and the most I had prepared while feeling the most unprepared. I couldn’t have asked for a better introduction to that part of the program… Events are hard, and Judges don’t always recognize the impact they have in the moment, and Paul was able to spotlight that for the Judges and bring his unique perspective to give the Judges the support they need at events. That doesn’t mean he didn’t teach them too! He was a wealth of knowledge and was very good at walking Judges through the spirit of the rules, not just the rule itself.”

—Colton Kohnke, VG Championship Mentor

“Paul meant so much to me. He was a presence at all major Pokémon events, but my favorite memory was visiting his local League in Cornwall (many years ago now!). My little Pokémon family travelled the 5 hours to play [at] his League Cup. He welcomed us into his comic book store all dressed up in his bowling shirt and spent the day running the Cup and making Batman jokes to match the decor. 

“He started every day with a smile…and was always there to talk through every tournament and every experience…be it VG or TCG. He encompassed everything I love about Pokémon and the community, and he will always have a special place in my heart.” 

—Gemma Byard, TCG Championship Mentor

Finally, here are a few words from the man himself, describing his own approach to mentoring:

“My ultimate goal is to bring joy to our Judges and even move them to tears with their achievements. At the end of the day, their successes are our successes, and we are here to celebrate every milestone with them."

Paul’s influence continues to shine as new Championship Mentors step out onto the tournament floor, primed to follow his example. We are extremely grateful for all he has done for the program—thank you, Paul!