IHEEM WALES 2024 AWARDS


the true testament of success. So that’s where I’m now, although it takes a bit of time to get there.” In an honest and interesting speech,


Colin Jackson went on to describe some of the highs and lows of his sporting career, the lessons he learned, and some of the interesting sporting and other personalities he met. A former sprint and hurdling athlete who specialised in 100 metre hurdles, Colin Jackson CBE enjoyed a career in which he represented Great Britain and Wales, won an Olympic Silver medal, became World Champion twice, World Indoor Champion once, went undefeated at the European Championships for 12 years, and was a two-time Commonwealth Champion. His World Record of 12.91 seconds for the 110 m hurdles stood for over a decade, and he remains the 60 metre hurdles World Record holder.


First medal Winning his first major medal – a Silver – in the 110 m hurdles aged just 19 at the 1986 Commonwealth Games, he soon established himself on the global scene, taking Bronze at the 1987 World Championships in Athletics, and a Silver at the 1988 Summer Olympics. After winning another Silver in the 60 metres hurdles at the 1989 IAAF World Indoor Championships, he won European and Commonwealth Gold medals in 1990. The 1993 season saw him reach the pinnacle of his sport: after a Silver medal at the 1993 Indoor Worlds, he went on to set a World Record of 12.91 seconds to become the 1993 World Champion. This landmark was unbeaten for almost thirteen years, and remains the World Championship record. He also helped the British 4 x 100 metres relay team to the World Silver medal. Between 1993 and 1995, he ran 44 races undefeated, and alongside European and Commonwealth Golds outdoors in 1994, he set another world record, running 7.30 seconds in the 60 m hurdles. A double Gold at the 1994 European Athletics Indoor Championships in the 60 m hurdles and sprint events saw him set a European record of 6.49 seconds over 60 metres. His 1995-1996 seasons were injury-affected, but he returned to the global stage in 1997, taking Silver twice, behind Anier Garcia at the Indoor World Championships and Allen Johnson in the World Outdoors. After winning the European Championships for a third consecutive time in 1998, he became World Champion indoors and out in 1999. He finished fifth at the 2000 Summer Olympics, and his last major medals came in 2002, taking European indoor and outdoor Gold and a Commonwealth Silver.


Sports commentating career After a period working in sports management and coaching, he now works


Colin Jackson CBE – the renowned Welsh former sprint and hurdling athlete, gave an entertaining and interesting after-dinner speech on his life both in and outside sport.


as a sports commentator for athletics and a television presenter (predominantly for the BBC). He has appeared not only on Strictly Come Dancing in 2005, but also on a number of other entertainment and factual television shows. Already the holder of the MBE received in 1990 for his services to athletics, in 1999 he was promoted to OBE, and then to CBE in 2003. In his after-dinner speech, he recalled that one of his sporting heroes had been Linford Christie, the Jamaican- born British former sprinter and athletics coach, and the only man to have won Gold medals in the 100 metres at all four major competitions open to British athletes. When asked by one coach about other athletes he particular admired, Colin Jackson remembered telling him: “Linford has what I describe as presence; he walks in, and at six foot five you know he is in a room. That is a huge advantage when you’re going to go off to the running track. People know you’re there.” Another fellow athlete he particularly


admired was British decathlete, Daley Thompson, who he described as ‘the best athlete on the planet – Olympic champion, World Champion, European champion, Commonwealth Champion’. “He achieved everything any athlete would want to achieve,” Colin Jackson told dinner guests. When his coach smiled, and conceded he had a point, he remembered adding: “The reason he’s the biggest icon for me, though, is that he drives a Porsche!” On meeting Daley Thompson as a


fellow team member, Colin Jackson recalls thinking: ‘If I’m ever going to announce myself to my hero, it is now’. He took up the story: “I opened by saying: ‘Hello, Mr Thompson; my name is Colin Jackson.’


He said: ‘I know who you are.’ I replied: ‘I competed yesterday, and I want to show you what I won.’ “So, I proudly dived into my bag, and took out this beautiful velvet box, opened it, and proudly presented my Silver medal to my hero. Daley looked at the medal, back at me, and then again at the medal, and said: ‘I didn’t realise they made them in that colour.’ In later closing, Colin Jackson said: “At the end of the day, I always say to everyone that I speak to: ‘You know, my life started off really as just a bit of a daydream. I dreamt of big things. I dreamt of being successful. I dreamt that I could do it, and at the end of the day, after staying hard- working, committed, and focused, and all the other things that will take you to your heights, my dream came true – apart from the fact that I never got the Porsche. But if you work hard, stay committed, and you dare to dream, I always say to everybody: ‘Remember, your dream can come true.’ Thanks for listening.” After applause and loud cheers, John


Prendergast thanked Colin Jackson for his very entertaining speech, and explained that it was now time to present the evening’s awards. He thanked the sponsors AECOM, Tilbury Douglas, ModuleCo Healthcare, the IHEEM Welsh Branch, and Tarkett. He explained: “We had a number of nominations in various categories, and the panel that decided each individual winner is made up of members of the IHEEM Welsh Branch. This year we followed quite a tight specification for the award criteria.”


n Apprentice of the Year 2024 The first award was for Apprentice of the Year, sponsored by AECOM. John Prendergast explained: “The winner in


August 2024 Health Estate Journal 25


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