Medals, badges, awards and trophies presented to the athlete and athletics administrator Colin Simpson during the course of his athletics career. These items were awarded to Simpson as both a young runner and a veteran athlete, spanning the mid-late 20th century. The papers also include a cartoon depicting Simpson in running poise.
Papers of Colin Simpson
Archive Collection
- For more information, email the repository
- Advice on accessing these materials
- Cite this description
- Bookmark:http://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/data/gb150-ath/cs
- This material is held at
- ReferenceGB 150 ATH/CS
- Dates of Creation1945 - 1990
- Name of Creator
- Language of MaterialEnglish
- Physical Description1 standard box
Scope and Content
Administrative / Biographical History
Colin Simpson was born in Birmingham on 2 April 1929, the son of Herbert and May Simpson (nee Glynn). He was educated at King Edward VI Camp Hill School and later joined the old boys association. In 1944 he joined Small Heath Harriers, prior to the club's merger to become Solihull and Small Heath Harriers, and competed in the Post Office Sports that year. He participated in many handicap races over half and one mile distances and was four times winner of the Coronation Cup, awarded to the winner of the Warwickshire senior men's mile, later 1500m. He won in the inaugural year, 1953 and in 1954, 1956 and 1958. As a veteran athlete he achieved success at the first World Veterans Athletics Championships held in Toronto in 1975, winning silver in the 800m and 1500m; and in Hannover in 1979. Although a track specialist, he did compete in a 10k road race in August 1976 in Rugby, finishing in third place. He was also a member of the winning UK cross-country team at the 1990 World Championships in Gateshead.
For many years Colin was treasurer of the Midland Veterans Athletic Club (MVAC), renamed Midland Masters Athletic Club (MMAC) in 2006. He was treasurer from the club's inception in 1972 until his death. His membership number was the first number issued following his win at the inaugural MVAC race. For many years he was also the club's membership secretary, editor of the club newsletters and was a member of the sub-committee which organised the annual National Masters Road Relays in Sutton Park. He was president of MVAC in 1986-7 and was awarded the President's Trophy for services to the club on two occasions, in 1994-5 and 1996.
Colin had married Margaret in 1952 and was an enthusiastic family man with two children, Roger and Lyn, and three grandchildren. He enjoyed jazz music, gardening and football, supporting West Bromwich Albion. He worked as an administrator for Birmingham City Council and then as a personnel officer at Aston University, retiring from full-time work in 1981. He kept a training diary throughout much of his life and between 1970 and 1981 regularly trained twice a day. In 2010 he was the West Midlands regional award winner for 'Services to Athletics' awarded by English Athletics. Colin Simpson died on 24 July 2011.
Sources: papers of Colin Simpson; obituaries published in MMAC newsletter No.227, August 2011 accessed 2 October 2014 from: http://mmacnewsarchive.wordpress.com/2011-2020/; obituary published in The Guardian, accessed 2 October 2014 from: http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2011/sep/11/colin-simpson-obituary
Access Information
Open. Access to all registered researchers.
Other Finding Aids
Please see full catalogue for more information.
Conditions Governing Use
Permission to make any published use of any material from the collection must be sought in advance in writing from the Director of Special Collections (email: special-collections@contacts.bham.ac.uk). Identification of copyright holders of unpublished material is often difficult. Special Collections will assist where possible with identifying copyright owners, but responsibility for ensuring copyright clearance rests with the user of the material.
Custodial History
This collection was previously in the custody of the National Centre for Athletics Literature (NCAL).