The Bill Reynolds Memorial Trophy
In recognition of a past-President and a truly remarkable man, the British Association of Road Races (BARR) proudly presents the first ever Bill Reynolds’ Memorial Trophy.
Joining BARR in 1990 he soon moved up the hierarchy from Regional Representative for the South East to Chairman in 1995 and finally President in 2003. He sadly passed away after a long illness in September 2010. Reynolds passionately believed in the sport of road running and the continued improvement in its organisation. As he said,
“Little did I realise just what a major part the Association would play in my life. It gave me the opportunity to venture into areas that in 1990 I was little aware of or had no knowledge of at all.”
The original aims of BARR were set out by Chris Brasher CBE, (the original Race Director of the London Marathon) and this connection continued with Reynold’s acting as Start and Baggage Manager for the London Marathon for a number of years. He was also Start/Finish Manager for the Edinburgh Marathon and Consultant for the Mumbai and Beirut Marathons.
His organisational skills were recognised by the Sport’s Governing Bodies sitting on the BAF Road Running Commission until 1997, the UK Athletics Road Running and Policy and Support Team (PST) and latterly on the runbritain Technical Group. He was instrumental in introducing the Road Race Licensing Standards that are in place today.
BARR wanted something that would continue his legacy and promote his continued pursuit of improving the standards of race organisation. The BARR Committee have created The Bill Reynolds Memorial Trophy which will be awarded annually to the BARR Member Event that is considered to have improved its race organisation over the previous 12 months.
This year’s winner was the ‘Big O Broadoak 10K’ road race based in the medieval village of Hatfield Broad Oak in Hertfordshire. Organised by the local school PTA it attracts around 1500 runners annually. The next race is scheduled for 27th May 2013.
To recognise Bill Reynolds past influences the trophy was presented to joint Race Directors Louise Baker and Venessa Ambler, by David Bedford the former Director of the London Marathon, colleague and a great friend of Reynolds. On receiving the award Louise Baker said “this is a fantastic surprise and a big thanks to BARR for all of its help and support with our event. We’re really chuffed”.
“We are delighted that the hard work of the committee & all the helpers from the village has been recognised” said Vanessa Ambler. “The HBO 10k has a very special atmosphere, and it takes a huge amount of time, people and effort throughout the year to get everything right on Race Day. Thank you to everyone for their support.”
The next race is Bank Holiday Monday May 27th and is already 80% full. To book your place visit the race website www.HBO-10k.org.uk