Police chief... and extreme sports fanatic
NEW CHIEF CONSTABLE LIVES LIFE ON THE EDGE
HE’S an all round action man and an adrenalin junkie – now he’s become our Chief Constable overseeing Northumbria Police and the safety of those who live in the region.
Winton Keenen has stepped into the shoes of Steve Ashman and is determined to make the force better.
But behind the white shirt and epaulets, he’s an extreme sports fanatic.
And in an exclusive interview with the Chronicle, the super-fit 53-year-old has given an insight into his life and how he keeps himself occupied outside work.
From white-water kayaking, triathlons to horse riding, scuba diving and now sky diving, this top cop has the force with him.
And he’s risen from working in Fenwick department store in Newcastle city centre after leaving school, to taking on one of the most prestigious roles in our region.
His ‘go get ‘em’ attitude is how he’s gone so far and nothing seems to faze him.
And he’s taking his new job in his stride as he prioritises making the force “better than it already is”, dealing with the vulnerable and making sure he brings police and the public closer.
But its his after-work activities that make him even more interesting.
“Sport is my world, that’s the way I am, that’s the way I get a respite from things, that’s the way I get a release from things,” admitted Winton. “Yes I was lucky and privileged enough to represent Great Britain at triathlon, that was hard work, but I loved that side of things. Horse riding, white-water kayaking, all of those things. I am young in my career as a skydiver, I do go sky diving and I’ve just come back from Spain doing some. It takes me away from work – so I am a little bit of an adrenalin junkie.” Winton started his career as a 20-year-old cop in 1985 as a PC on patrol in Sunderland North after realising life in a department store wasn’t exciting enough for him. He believes he is probably the only chief officer in the country to have remained in the same force and gone through every rank to become the Chief Constable. Action man Winton went to Iraq in 2003 as the first Contingent Commander for the deployment of UK nonmilitary police officers acting as mentors to members of the Iraq Police Service. While there, he became responsible for setting up a police training academy and advising local senior police officers. He witnesses the horrors of conflict when 17 people where killed after two bomb devices exploded. He said it was “without doubt one of the most challenging things” he’s ever done in policing. But it was during his teens when he quickly realised it was the thrill of the wind in his face that ignited his enthusiasm. As a youngster, he went to Kings School in Tynemouth where he excelled at all the usual class sports. “I was very sporty, that’s all I did,” said Winton. “I didn’t have a great interest in academia, so I didn’t pay a lot of attention on the academic stuff at school but did a lot of sport – rugby, cricket, basketball and athletics, all of those things. When I left school, to be honest, I didn’t know what I wanted to do, and I was lucky to be taken on by one of the real institutions of the North East, Fenwick department store. I worked there on a manage-
Sport is my world, that’s the way I am, that’s the way I get respite from things, that’s the way I get release from things Winton Keenen
ment trainee programme, I met some lovely people and enjoyed my time there, but being confined in that environment in store wasn’t for me, I still wanted to do my sport and wanted to be a bit more active.”
At 18, before joining Fenwick, he took a year out and spent it riding the waves on his surfboard off the coast of Seaton Carew in Hartlepool.
“They were better waves off the coast of Hartlepool than at Tynemouth and I spent a lot of time there as well as visiting other places around the UK; I had a great time,” he said.
Winton had the need for speed and took up skiing, snowboarding and scuba diving and got his instructor tickets, travelling to Canada and Europe.
And while he was climbing the ranks as an officer, he was also perfecting horse riding and white-water kayaking.
“Horse riding is a great passion of mine and so is white-water kayaking. We have great waters in th North East, on all the Tyne and the River Aln.
“Once, in the water at Chollerford, I became trapped under a tree and was under the water for a couple of minutes. It was touch and go.
“In my 40s, I represented Great Britain at triathlon in that age group and then at the age of 52, I took up sky diving and I love it. I’ve been to Florida on a free-fall course and then I went to Seville for further skydiving qualifications.”
Winton has proved he’s fearless and is now looking forward to getting his teeth into his new role.