London Youth Games Hall of Fame

The Balfour Beatty London Youth Games Hall of Fame was created in 2009 to recognise former London Youth Games competitors who have gone on to world class sporting careers and to celebrate the role the Games have had in their development.

Since its launch, eighteen athletes have been inducted at the annual Hall of Fame and Awards Evening, which also recognises the groups and individuals who make a huge contribution to the success of each year.

To date, the London Youth Games Hall of Fame inductees have won 28 Olympic or Paralympic medals and 57 World Championship medals, and amassed over 1000 international appearances for their country. The Hall of Fame athletes cover ten sports and thirteen London boroughs.

2009

The first group were inducted into the Hall of Fame on Tuesday 15 September 2009. These included former Olympic 100m champion Linford Christie, former Olympic 400m champion Christine Ohuruogu, former javelin world record holder Steve Backley, Chicago Bulls NBA All-Star Luol Deng, Olympic Lightweight Double Sculls rowing gold medallist Mark Hunter and Paralympic swimmer Dervis Konuralp.

2010

The second Hall of Fame evening took place on Thursday 9 September 2010 at Lord's Cricket Ground. That year's inductees included Olympic 400m hurdler medallist Tasha Danvers, double Olympic champion Mo Farah, five-time Premier League champion and England footballer Rio Ferdinand, world bronze medallist netball player Amanda Newton, six-time Paralympic gold medallist and six-time London Marathon winner David Weir and Tour De France winner and four-time Olympic cycling gold medallist Bradley Wiggins.

2011

The 2011 Hall of Fame and Awards Evening took place on Tuesday 20 September at Lord's Cricket Ground. The third batch of inductees consisted of three-time Olympian skier Chemmy Alcott, Paralympic swimming gold medallist Elaine Barrett, world triathlon champion Tim Don, Commonwealth Games gold medallist high jumper Dalton Grant, Commonwealth Games gold medallist squash player Paul Johnson, and superstar Arsenal and England footballer Rachel Yankey.

2012

The 2012 London Youth Games Hall of Fame and Awards Evening too place on Tuesday 9 October at Lord's Cricket Ground. There were six new entries into the Hall of Fame. This included four medal winners from the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics. Olympic cycling gold medallist Joanna Rowsell, Paralympic mixed rowing gold medallist Naomi Riches, judo star and silver medallist Gemma Gibbons and men's C2 canoeing silver medallist Richard Hounslow. England rugby star Margaret Alphonsi and double world champion sprinter John Regis completed the line-up.[1]

Inductees
Year Name Borough Sport Notes
2009 Steve Backley[2] Bexley Athletics Twice broke the javelin world record and is the only British track and field athlete to have won medals at three successive Olympic Games. He has also won two World Championship silvers, four European Championship golds and three Commonwealth Games golds.
2009 Linford Christie[3] Hammersmith and Fulham Athletics Competed at the first ever London Youth Games in 1977 for Hammersmith & Fulham where he was only selected for the relay. He went on to enjoy one of the most successful careers of any British athlete, crowned by his victory in the men's 100m at the 1992 Olympic Games. He is the only man ever to simultaneously hold the Olympic, World, European and Commonwealth 100m titles.
2009 Luol Deng[4] Croydon Basketball Competed for Croydon at the London Youth Games before going on to become one of the world's premier basketball players and one of the biggest stars of the NBA. He is the captain of the iconic Chicago Bulls and the GB basketball team, and was voted on to the Eastern Conference All-Star team for the first time in 2012. Deng was also patron of the 2009 London Youth Games.
2009 Mark Hunter[5] Havering Rowing Represented Havering at the London Youth Games, where he took part in some of his early rowing competitions. He has gone on to enjoy a stellar international career including winning 2008 Olympic gold and two successive World Championship gold medals in the lightweight double sculls with partner Zac Purchase.
2009 Christine Ohuruogu[6] Newham Athletics Represented Newham at the London Youth Games in both netball and athletics. She is one of the most successful British athletes of her generation, winning Commonwealth and World 400m gold before going on to win Olympic gold in Beijing in 2008. She was the patron of the London Youth Games in 2010.
2009 Dervis Konuralp[7] Hackney Swimming Represented Hackney at the London Youth Games in the disability swimming class before going on to a successful international career in the pool. He has competed at four Paralympic medals, twice winning medals. In Sydney 2000, he won bronze in the S13 (visually impaired) 50m freestyle and at Athens 2004, he won bronze in the S13 200m individual medley.
2010 Tasha Danvers[8] Croydon Athletics Competed for Croydon in athletics at the London Youth Games. She made her breakthrough to international level by reaching the 400m hurdles final at the 2000 Olympic Games. She then missed the 2004 Olympic Games due to childbirth, but she returned to take silver at the 2006 Commonwealth Games, and at the 2008 Olympic Games, crowned her career with bronze.
2010 Mo Farah[9] Hounslow Athletics Represented Hounslow in athletics at the London Youth Games in his early years. He has won European gold on the track, cross country and indoors. In 2010, he was the first British athlete to win a 10,000m and 5000m gold at the European Championships. In 2011, he became the first man ever to win a global 5000m title when winning gold at the World Championships. He also won 10,000m silver at the same championships.
2010 Rio Ferdinand[10] Southwark Football Competed for Southwark in gymnastics at the London Youth Games in his early years, but went on to enjoy a successful career in football. To date, he has won nine major trophies, including five English Premier League titles. The highlight was when he captained the Manchester United team that lifted the European Champions League title in 2008. He has played for England at two World Cup Finals and has captained his country on several occasions.
2010 Amanda Newton[11] Newham Netball Represented Newham in netball at the London Youth Games before going on to become one of the country's greatest players. She represented England on more than 100 occasions, picking up Commonwealth Games and World Championship bronze medals in a high-class career.
2010 David Weir[12] Sutton Athletics Team GB's most high-profile Paralympic athlete began his athletics career at the London Youth Games, where he represented Sutton. He is one of the world's premier wheelchair racers. He has won a total of six Paralympic medals including gold in the 800m and 1500m in Beijing 2008. He is also a prodigious marathon competitor and has won London six times and New York once. Weir was one of the patrons of the 2012 London Youth Games.
2010 Bradley Wiggins[13] Camden Cycling Represented Camden in cycling at the London Youth Games. In total, he has won six Olympic medals, including gold in the individual pursuit at the 2004 and 2008 Games and gold in the team pursuit in 2008. He has also won eleven medals at world cycling championships, including six gold. His fourth-place finish at the 2009 Tour de France was the highest ever by a British rider.
2011 Chemmy Alcott[14] Richmond Alpine Skiing Represented Richmond in tennis and dry slope skiing as a youngster before going on to become one of the UK's most successful alpine ski racers. She is the only British ski racer to have won a single run in a World Cup race. She is also the only British female ski racer ever to have competed at three Olympic Games.
2011 Elaine Barrett[15] Hackney Swimming Her introduction to competitive sport came with Hackney at the London Youth Games. It saw Barrett make her first step onto the competitive pathway which took her to the top of her sport. She won five Paralympic Games medals, including gold in the SB11 (blind) class at the 2004 Athens Games. She also won 29 world or European medals and broke seven world records.
2011 Tim Don[16] Hounslow Triathlon Competed for Hounslow in the triathlon at the London Youth Games. He has become one of the UK's foremost competitors in triathlon. He has competed in three Olympic triathlons and is the only man ever to win the World Triathlon, World Duathlon and World Aquathlon titles.
2011 Dalton Grant[17] Hackney Athletics The high jumper represented Hackney in athletics at the London Youth Games. He enjoyed a 16-year career at the international level which garnered five major championship medals including gold at the 1994 European Indoors and gold at the 1998 Commonwealth Games. He represented Great Britain at three Olympic Games.
2011 Paul Johnson[18] Greenwich Squash Competed for Greenwich in squash at the London Youth Games before going on to a high-class international career. He reached a career high of world no.4 in the sport's rankings and enjoyed notable success at the Commonwealth Games, the most prestigious competition in squash. He won doubles gold and singles bronze in 1998 and doubles bronze in 2002. He won seven European Team Championships with England.
2011 Rachel Yankey[19] Brent Football Represented Brent in football at the London Youth Games before going on to become one of England's most successful female football players. She has won every domestic honour in the game and was also part of the all-conquering 2007 Arsenal Ladies team. She played a key role as the team became the first English club ever to win the UEFA Women's Cup. She has won over 100 caps for England and has played – and scored – in three FIFA Women's World Cup Finals tournaments. Yankey was the patron of the 2011 London Youth Games.
2012 Margaret Alphonsi Enfield Rugby Began her competitive career playing girls' tag rugby for Enfield at the London Youth Games. She has become one of the world's foremost players in the women's game. Known as "The Machine", she has played a key role in England winning seven successive Six Nations wins and a historic first-ever series victory over New Zealand.

References
  1. 2012 Hall of Fame Induction. Retrieved 19 February 2013
  2. "Hall of Fame Inductees Announced (Steve Backley)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  3. "Hall of Fame Inductees Announced (Linford Christie)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  4. "Hall of Fame Inductees Announced (Luol Deng)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  5. "Hall of Fame Inductees Announced (Mark Hunter)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  6. "Hall of Fame Inductees Announced (Christine Ohuruogu)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  7. "Hall of Fame Inductees Announced (Dervis Konuralp)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  8. "Evening of Celebration (Tasha Danvers)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  9. "Evening of Celebration (Mo Farah)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  10. "Evening of Celebration (Rio Ferdinand)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  11. "Evening of Celebration (Amanda Newton)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  12. "Evening of Celebration (David Weir)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  13. "Evening of Celebration (Bradley Wiggins)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  14. "Former Athletes Honoured (Chemmy Alcott)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  15. "Former Athletes Honoured (Elaine Barrett)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  16. "Former Athletes Honoured (Tim Don)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  17. "Former Athletes Honoured (Dalton Grant)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  18. "Former Athletes Honoured (Paul Johnson)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  19. "Former Athletes Honoured (Rachel Yankey)". London Youth Games. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
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