Ex-sprinter Jason Gardener and Paralympian Ben Rushgrove have become the first inductees to the University of Bath’s Hall of Fame for Sport.
The awards have been made to recognise the pair’s sporting achievements and for their contribution to the university’s sporting life. Both men were born in the city and were coached at the university before going on to win medals at international level.
Gardener is one of only four British sprinters to run 100m under 10-seconds with a personal best of 9.98, and he was lead-off man for the Olympic 4x 100m quartet who won gold at the Athens Olympics in 2004. He attended Beechen Cliff School in Bath before moving onto the University, where he was coached by Malcolm Arnold, who is currently the national event coach for hurdles and senior performance coach for British Athletics. Gardener also won individual medals at world and European level.
Rushgrove has won medals at both the 2008 and 2012 Paralympic Games in the 100m and 200m, with a silver and bronze respectively in the T36 class – athletes with cerebral palsy – and was voted the University of Bath’s Sports Personality of the Year in 2009. In 2007, Rushgrove set the world record in the 200m when he became the first man in his class to go under 25-seconds for the event.
On receiving his award, Jason Gardener said “I’m delighted to be joining the Hall of Fame. I feel extremely proud that my time and achievements training at the University of Bath have been recognised in this very special way.
“To achieve success at the very highest level in sport requires an excellent, committed support team and environment. I am extremely grateful to every person at the University who played a part directly or indirectly contributing to my success, enabling me to prepare and be the best that I could be. Without the University’s support, achieving my childhood dream of becoming an Olympic Champion certainly would have been harder to achieve.”
Ben Rushgrove said “When I started on this journey I had no idea I would end up in a Hall of Fame. It’s a privilege to have represented my country and I hope the Hall of Fame will inspire others to one day get their picture on it.”
