By Rob Cole
The Welsh Sports Hall of Fame added five new names to its Roll of Honour at the 33rd annual dinner at the Parkgate Hotel, Cardiff on Thursday evening.
The ‘Famous Five’ took the number of inductees over the past 34 years to 186 and there were also three other special awards.
Both Hall of Fame president and chair, Lynn Davies and Laura McAllister, were honoured with a ‘Rhodri’ for their outstanding services to Welsh sport.
Long jump ace Davies was handed his award, named after the former Wales First Minister and Hall of Fame chair Rhodri Morgan, six days after the 60th anniversary of his Olympic gold medal winning leap in Tokyo.
Two time Olympic decathlon champion Daley Thompson made the presentation to his former Team GB manager, while McAllister, the first Welsh delegate to earn a seat on the Uefa Executive Committee, received her ‘Rhodri’ from Cardiff Met vice chancellor Professor Rachel Langford.
Not a bad night for the students,
Go to the Welsh Sports Hall of Fame Awards, interview Sir Gareth Edwards, & a few legendary Olympic Gold medallists like Daley Thompson & Lynn Davies pic.twitter.com/CAIuf9FVBC
— SportBroadcastMSc & Sport MediaBSc (@MetBroadcast) October 25, 2024
The first Roll of Honour inductee was former Glamorgan captain and CEO, Hugh Morris, who actually received his award a week early at Creigiau Golf Club due to a family wedding. Current Glamorgan President Alan Wilkins handed over the trophy.
The first Wales women’s rugby captain, and try scorer, Liza Burgess, became the second women’s rugby player to enter the Roll of Honour after Non Evans.
Burgess, a former vice-chair of the WRU and World Rugby council member, is currently the Wales U20 head coach, was already a member of the World Rugby Hall of Fame from 2018.
She received her award as “the greatest Welsh women’s rugby player” from “the greatest rugby player of all-time” Sir Gareth Edwards.
Two great Paralympians bridged an 11-year gap since the Roll of Honour last welcomed a Paralympian.
Team GB Wheelchair Rugby captain from the 2020 Tokyo Games, Jim Roberts, was joined by 2008 gold medal swimmer Liz Johnson in being inducted onto the Roll of Honour, joining Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson, David Roberts, Chris Hallam, Teresa John, David Winters and John Harris.
Cardiff Swimming Club, the UK’s most successful independently funded swimming club, was presented with a Lord Brooks award for 50 years of outstanding service to Welsh sport.
During that time they have produced 20 Olympians, including clubs vice chairman Leigh Atkinson and Anne Adams-King, who received the award from Wales’ greatest swimmer, double Olympic gold medalist Matt Richards.
The evening closed with Jamie Baulch, inducted earlier in the year, making one final handover to his former world champion, 4 x 400 relay partner Iwan Thomas.
They both lost their British and European relay best time this year, while Thomas saw his 27-year-old British record overtaken by both Charlie Dobson and Matt Hudson-Smith during the summer.
Reporter Alex Bywater, of the Daily Mail, picked up the prestigious Peter Corrigan Welsh Sports Media award.