Long distance Liz runs into the Hall of Fame
Thursday 25 November 2004
The most successful female distance runner in British athletics history, Liz McColgan MBE will take her place in the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame (SSHOF) today (25 November). McColgan’s outstanding career has spanned more than two decades and included winning two gold medals at the 1986 and 1990 Commonwealth Games and a silver at the 1998 Seoul Olympics.
McColgan together with five other Scottish sporting heroes will be inducted during a ceremony performed by Patricia Ferguson MSP, Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport.
Ms Ferguson said: “The Scottish Sports Hall of Fame aims to honour Scotland’s sporting heroes past and present and inspire future champions to participate in sport. We recognise that high performance athletes can influence people to pursue more active lives and to strive for excellence.
“Participation in sport can help improve the long-term health and well-being of our nation and provide a stronger pool of talent to nurture future world-class performances.
“The Scottish Executive and sportscotland are fully committed to achieving international sporting success. To help achieve this we should take maximum advantages of such sources of inspiration. Last week saw London submit its bid to bring the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games to London. Hosting these Games would inspire our up and coming athletes to compete at the greatest sporting event in the world. That, along with the other sporting, tourism and business benefits that these Games would bring to all parts of the UK, is why Scottish Ministers strongly support the London bid.
“The Scottish Sports Hall of Fame, which will soon be housed in a permanent exhibition at the Royal Museum, rightly recognising the achievements of those who have excelled in their own sport and helped to raise the profile of Scotland and Scottish sport to a national and international audience.
“Congratulations to all of the new inductees.”
The earliest sportsman to be recognised today is long distance runner, Arthur James Robertson whose sporting achievements include being the first of only six Scots to ever win an athletics Olympic gold medal which was in 1908 in the three mile team race and followed by a silver in the 3,200m steeplechase.
I am particularly pleased that our ultimate goal of a permanent Gallery here at the Royal Museum is just around the corner thanks to a successful partnership with our colleagues from National Museums of Scotland.
The legendary Celtic goal scorer, Jimmy McGrory also features in this year’s line-up scoring a massive 397 goals in 378 League games and more than 500 in all, which remains an achievement almost unmatched in world football terms. His association with Celtic was lifelong with a 20 year stint as manager, continuing his involvement in public relations until his death in 1982.
W I Douglas Elliot is today recognised as the outstanding Scotland rugby player of the early post-war years, winning 29 caps and excelling in his role as captain versus the All Blacks and in the Victory internationals.
Holder of four world records and two Commonwealth Games medals, Jack Wardrop is the latest swimmer to join the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame. Born in Motherwell, Wardrop went to Michigan University in America in 1952 and never came back to Scotland permanently. By the end of 1952 Wardrop held a total of 32 records and five British titles. He was one of a record seven swimmers from his famous hometown club to be selected for the 1948 Olympic Games in London.
1988 US Masters winner, golfer Sandy Lyle is also inducted today. He became the first non-American to win the famous green jacket and at the Championship dinner, haggis was added to the menu in his honour! Sandy was also the first Scot since Tommy Armour to win The Open in 1985.
Now in its third year, the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame has been developed through a unique partnership between the National Museums of Scotland and sportscotland, and already includes legendary names such as Formula 1 racing driver Sir Jackie Stewart OBE, swimmer David Wilkie and Major League baseball star Bobby Thomson. Today’s ceremony brings the total number of inductees to 70 (9 women and 61 men). Of the 19 sports represented there are: 12 footballers, eight from both athletics and swimming; seven each from golf and rugby and six boxers.
At 40 years of age Liz McColgan is the youngest living inductee and golfer Jessie Valentine MBE inducted in 2003 is the eldest at 89 years. The earliest sportsman to be recognised in the Hall of Fame is Captain Robert Barclay Allardice 1779-1854 for his famous marathon walking feats including in 1809 walking 1 mile every hour for 1000 hours.
The ultimate aim of the project has always been the development of a permanent tribute to Scotland’s sporting achievements. Thanks to outstanding fundraising efforts by the National Museums of Scotland, next autumn will see the opening of the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame Gallery at the Royal Museum of Scotland.
Dr Gordon Rintoul, Director of the National Museums of Scotland, said: “I am delighted that the partnership between National Museums of Scotland and sportscotland is once again welcoming new inductees to the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame. Thanks to our successful fundraising campaign, both at home and abroad, the sterling achievements of these Scottish sportsmen and women will be recognised in a new gallery in the Museum of Scotland in 2005 ”.
Sports Halls of Fame are an internationally recognised way of acknowledging past performers, promoting excellence in sport and instilling sport as a key part of a nation’s culture. By providing a public record of Scotland’s greatest sports men and women, the Hall aims to inspire younger generations and promote a culture of Scots recognising and celebrating Scottish success across a range of sports.
Congratulating the 2004 inductees, Alastair Dempster, Chairman, sportscotland, said: “I am privileged to be here today as we induct a further six Scottish sporting legends into the Sports Hall of Fame. I am particularly pleased that our ultimate goal of a permanent Gallery here at the Royal Museum is just around the corner thanks to a successful partnership with our colleagues from National Museums of Scotland.
“I am sure the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame will be a significant attraction to Scots and visitors alike, joining together to celebrate some of the world’s greatest sporting achievements and giving inspiration particularly to our young people, highlighting just what can be achieved through participation in sport.”
- Biographies of the inductees are detailed below and are available by email on request.
- Free photographs from the event are available from Steve Lindridge, Ideal Images Mobile: 07718 919597
- In tune with induction criteria applied to sports halls of fame around the world, nominees for induction into the SSHOF must be either: a person born in Scotland, a person who, under the rules of the relevant governing body, was eligible to compete for Scotland or a person who has resided in Scotland during the major part of their sporting career. Also they should have normally retired from top-level participation in their sport for a minimum of five years. However, the interpretation of the criteria is at the discretion of the independent selection panel.
- The independent selection panel comprises leading sports historians, journalists and administrators: Louise Martin CBE (Chair), John Burnett, Jon Doig, Doug Gillon, Professor Grant Jarvie, Norman Mair, Andy Mitchell, Robin Morris, David Webster OBE, Alison Walker, Mike Wilson and Colin Pearson.
- The official SSHOF website: www.scottishsportshalloffame.co.uk has a profile of all 70 inductees.
Inductee Biographies 2004
Arthur James Robertson (1879 - 1957) - Athletics
An all-round sportsman who originally preferred cycling, Robertson only took up athletics seriously in 1906; a fact that perhaps makes his achievements on the track all the more impressive. In 1908 alone Robertson won Olympic gold in the three mile team race – making him the first of only six Scots to do so – and Olympic silver in the steeplechase. He was also crowned the World Cross Country Champion, set a new world record in the 5,000m, and set a new Scottish native record in the four miles which remained unbeaten for some 45 years.
- Gold medal, three mile team race, Olympics 1908
- Silver medal, 3,200 steeplechase, Olympics, 1908
- World Cross Country Champion, 1908
- World record holder, 5,000m, 1908
Jimmy McGrory (1904 - 1982) - Association Football
With more than 500 goals for Celtic to his name – a massive 397 of those in 378 League games – it’s little wonder that legendary ace Jimmy McGrory remains, unequivocally, the greatest goal scorer in the Club’s history. In one match alone he scored eight goals against Dunfermline; in another, against Motherwell, he scored the fastest ever league hat-trick in just three minutes. McGrory’s passion for the Club continued long after his playing days were over – as manager of Celtic for twenty years between 1945 and 1965, and in Public Relations until his death in 1982.
Player:
- Scottish League Championship wins, 1926, 1936
- Scottish Cup wins, 1925, 1931, 1933, 1937
- Seven Scotland caps
Manager:
- Scottish League Championship win, 1954
- Scottish Cup wins, 1951 & 1954
- Scottish League Cup wins, 1957 & 1958
W I Douglas Elliot (b. 1923) - Rugby Union
Make mention of Scotland’s rugby record in the immediate post-war years and one name is guaranteed to come up time and again – W I Douglas Elliot. An Edinburgh Academical, Elliot possessed innate rugby ability, great pace and – thanks to his life as a border farmer – an abundance of stamina. Those same farming ties meant that Elliot never toured with the Lions. Nonetheless he still managed to notch up 29 caps over his rugby career; two of his most memorable displays included the sensational defeat of much fancied Wales XV in 1951 and the tantalisingly narrow 3-0 loss to the All Blacks 1953-54, in which Elliot proved an inspiring captain.
- 29 Scotland caps, 7 as captain
- 5 Victory Internationals
Jack Wardrop (b. 1932)- Swimming
First learning to swim at Motherwell Baths, Wardrop wasted little time making his presence felt on the competitive arena, setting a number of new Scottish swimming records by his early teens. In 1949 he won four titles at the Scottish Championships; in 1950, three British titles – making him the first male swimmer ever to win three such titles at one meeting. By the end of 1952, Wardop held a total of 32 records and five British titles. Then, in 1954, came Commonwealth medal success, and a new world record in the 220 yards freestyle.
- Four Scottish Championship titles, 1949
- British freestyle title holder, 1949
- 220, 440 and 880 yards and mile freestyle title holder, 1950
- Silver and bronze medals, Empire & Commonwealth Games, 1954
- World record holder, 220 yards freestyle, 1954 & 1955
- World record holder, 440 yards medley, 1955
Sandy Lyle MBE (b. 1958) - Golf
With a career as rich and varied as Sandy Lyle’s – Open Champion, 3-times European Champion, World Match Play winner and a regular face on Britain’s Ryder Cup and European Cup teams – it’s difficult to single out any one achievement. But the memory that perhaps remains most vivid in the hearts and minds of Scots golf fans was Lyle’s famous win at the US Masters in Augusta in 1988, where he became the first non-American ever to win the much sought after green jacket.
- Open winner, 1985
- US Masters winner, 1988
- European Tour Champion, 1979, 1980, 1985
- World Match Play winner, 1988
- 5 Ryder Cups
- 18 European Cups
Liz McColgan MBE (b. 1964) - Athletics
Few who watched the 1976 Dundee Schools Cross Country Championship being won by Hawkhill Harrier Liz McColgan (then Liz Lynch) could have predicted the success story that was to unfold. Nine major medals – including two Olympic golds and one silver – and numerous marathon wins later, and Liz had earned herself a place in the history books as Britain’s most successful female distance runner. In 1991 she was named BBC Sports Personality of the Year, and in 1992 was awarded an MBE.
- Olympic gold medal, half marathon, 1988
- Olympic silver medal, 10,000m, 1988
- Commonwealth gold medal, 10,000m, 1986, 1990
- Commonwealth bronze medal, 3,000m, 1990
- World Championships gold medal, 10,000m, 1991
- World Cross Country Championships silver medal, 1987, 1992, bronze medal, 1991
- World Indoor Championships silver medal, 3000m, 1989
- Winner, New York Marathon, 1991, Tokyo Marathon, 1992, London Marathon, 1996