Home-grown heroes

Reporter: by KAREN DOHERTY
Date online: 30 July 2010

Our very own sporting greats are recognised with hall of fame honour
OLDHAM’S sporting heroes have been recognised with their own hall of fame.

Two of the borough’s greats unveiled the roll of honour — voted for by Chronicle readers.

Dorothy Emerson, who won high jump silver in the 1960 Rome Olympics, was joined by Commonwealth Games swimming silver medalist Steven Dronsfield at the ceremony.

Emerson, who would jump over gates as a young delivery girl in Failsworth, defied critics who thought she was too small for the event at 5ft 6in.

She was the last female high jump medalist for Great Britain. The Chronicle teamed up with Oldham Community Leisure, which runs the borough’s sports centres, to create the inspiring honours board with two years to go until the London 2012 Olympics.

It takes pride of place at Oldham Sports Centre and features a diverse range of sportsmen and women who have competed at the top level. The earliest is heavyweight boxing champ William Hague whose name is next to Henry Taylor, one of the country’s greatest ever Olympians with eight medals at four games. Taylor learned to swim in Hollinwood Canal and in 1908 the miner’s son won three golds at the London Olympics. He later became an attendant at Chadderton baths. Other Olympians include wrestler Herbert Hall — who won bronze at the 1954 Commonwealth Games in Canada — and cyclist Chris Newton. Four members of the silver-winning wheelchair basketball team from the 1996 Atlanta Paralympics are honoured — Dan Johnson, Garry Peel, Simon Munn and Malcolm Tarkenter.

There is also swimmer Sascha Kindred, who scooped two gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics, bringing his total Paralympic medal haul to nine. He received the OBE last year.

The most recent name on the list is Nicole Jackson, who played ice- hockey for Great Britain.

Cricketer and England Test captain Michael Atherton joins footballers Paul Scholes and David Platt on the board.

Platt, who played for Chadderton, starred for England at the 1990 World Cup in Italy.

The midfielder with an eye for goal later went on to captain the side. The former Manchester United apprentice became the world’s most expensive player with transfers to several clubs including Aston Villa, Juventus and Arsenal.

Scholes is a one-club man who made his debut in the Manchester United midfield in the 1994/95 season and was an integral part of Fergie’s historic treble-winning side of 1999 — despite missing the dramatic Champions League final victory over Bayern Munich through suspension.

He played for England at the 1998 and 2002 World Cups.

A separate rugby roll of honour pays tribute to the borough’s wealth of talent including such world-famous names as Kyle Eastmond, Iestyn Harris, Paul Sculthorpe and Barrie McDermott.

Oldham Chronicle sports editor Kevin Richardson said: “The hall of fame is a wonderful idea. The list of names rekindles great memories.

“Oldham’s sporting greats and their achievements should never be forgotten. Hopefully, it will inspire the youth in the borough to pursue their own sporting dreams.”