Oswestry Games 2012
Sporting Hall of Fame
Sporting Hall of Fame
The OSWESTRY GAMES 2012 SPORTING HALL OF FAME is a legacy of the Oswestry Games that were held in July 2012 to celebrate the London Olympics.
Aiming to involve as many of Oswestry's sports clubs and arts organisations as possible, the Oswestry Games (our own "Oslympics"), organised by Oswestry Sports Council, held events all over the town, culminating in a closing ceremony centred around the (then new) Leisure Centre. Olympian, and former 5,000m World record holder, David Moorcroft was delighted to come along on the day and start our 10km race. A great way to close an exciting fortnight!
We were thrilled when the Oswestry Games received the 2012 Legacy Healthy Lifestyle Award at the sixth annual Energize Awards in Shrewsbury in November that year, but that was never to be the end of it. The aim was always to be for the spirit of the games to live on and inspire future local sport by the creation of a Hall of Fame to recognise and celebrate successful Oswestry sportsmen and women to be on permanent display in the Leisure Centre.
At an early stage in the planning, the Sports Council had received the financial support of the Mary Hignett Bequest Fund administered by Oswestry Rotary Club, who were asked to nominate one of their members to join the planning committee. By then, people had been given their responsibilities, but it had not been decided who would actually put together the Hall of Fame. Rotary member Hazel Yates volunteered! and we are immensely grateful for all her efforts ever since. Sadly, Hazel died unexpectedly on 8th January 2024. Her tireless enthusiasm and hard work to make the Hall of Fame such an inspiring display, will be sadly missed.
Via appeals in the local press and radio interviews, members of the public made sufficient nominations to form a list of 21 Oswestry sports personalities from a wide range of sporting activities and years. These included football, athletics, golf, gymnastics, cricket, boxing, mountain biking, motor racing, wheelchair basketball and paralympic athletics. The period covered went from the 1870s to the present day. Some of the names you will see are familiar - Ian Woosnam, Andy Lloyd and Alan Ball - but others are less well known, but just as important in their field. The Hall of Fame was launched by wheelchair rugby and basketball competitor Mark Fosbrook during the Oslympics with gymnast Neil Thomas in the audience, both Hall of Famers themselves.
Aiming to involve as many of Oswestry's sports clubs and arts organisations as possible, the Oswestry Games (our own "Oslympics"), organised by Oswestry Sports Council, held events all over the town, culminating in a closing ceremony centred around the (then new) Leisure Centre. Olympian, and former 5,000m World record holder, David Moorcroft was delighted to come along on the day and start our 10km race. A great way to close an exciting fortnight!
We were thrilled when the Oswestry Games received the 2012 Legacy Healthy Lifestyle Award at the sixth annual Energize Awards in Shrewsbury in November that year, but that was never to be the end of it. The aim was always to be for the spirit of the games to live on and inspire future local sport by the creation of a Hall of Fame to recognise and celebrate successful Oswestry sportsmen and women to be on permanent display in the Leisure Centre.
At an early stage in the planning, the Sports Council had received the financial support of the Mary Hignett Bequest Fund administered by Oswestry Rotary Club, who were asked to nominate one of their members to join the planning committee. By then, people had been given their responsibilities, but it had not been decided who would actually put together the Hall of Fame. Rotary member Hazel Yates volunteered! and we are immensely grateful for all her efforts ever since. Sadly, Hazel died unexpectedly on 8th January 2024. Her tireless enthusiasm and hard work to make the Hall of Fame such an inspiring display, will be sadly missed.Via appeals in the local press and radio interviews, members of the public made sufficient nominations to form a list of 21 Oswestry sports personalities from a wide range of sporting activities and years. These included football, athletics, golf, gymnastics, cricket, boxing, mountain biking, motor racing, wheelchair basketball and paralympic athletics. The period covered went from the 1870s to the present day. Some of the names you will see are familiar - Ian Woosnam, Andy Lloyd and Alan Ball - but others are less well known, but just as important in their field. The Hall of Fame was launched by wheelchair rugby and basketball competitor Mark Fosbrook during the Oslympics with gymnast Neil Thomas in the audience, both Hall of Famers themselves.
The Hall of Fame is not a 'done, dead' thing; the people of Oswestry continue to do great sporting deeds. Our newest members of the Hall of Fame are Sam Martin who won the WHEA Strongman European Championships for his weight and broke the Atlas Stone Lift world record and Dan Jones, a local swimmer who represented Wales in the Birmingham Commonwealth Games. They were inducted into the Hall of Fame on 26 April 2024.
The citations are on permanent display in the gallery above the cafe area in Oswestry Leisure Centre - please go and have a look! They are also available to download on this link: (16 MB file)
Oswestry Sporting Hall of Fame
If there is anybody else you would like to be considered for inclusion, please contact a member of tOswestry Sports Forum or email
halloffame(at)oswestrygames.co.uk .
(The @ is not shown in email addresses on this website in order to reduce the amount of SPAM .)