MUCH WENLOCK: THE ALTERNATIVE TO THE OLYMPICS

AS TICKETS GO ON SALE FOR LONDON 2012, DISCOVER THE

UNEXPECTED ROOTS OF THE MODERN OLYMPICS IN RURAL
SHROPSHIRE

The 125th Wenlock Olympian Games

8 – 11 July 2011, Linden Fields, Much Wenlock, Shropshire

The Wenlock Olympian Games have been held almost every year in Much
Wenlock since 1850 attracting athletes from across the UK.

The Games’ founder William Penny Brookes was the inspiration for the
modern international Olympics.

www.wenlock-olympian-society.org.uk

The 6.6 million public tickets for the London 2012 Olympics go on sale in a matter of
days. With prices ranging from £20 to £2,012 and more than 2 million people
registered and poised to buy, there are bound to be some disappointments. The
small town of Much Wenlock in Shropshire offers an Olympian alternative.

While it may come as a surprise to many, the modern international Olympics has its
roots not in Athens, but instead in this charming and quintessentially English town.
This is all thanks to local doctor and philanthropist William Penny Brookes who
established the Wenlock Olympian Games in 1850 – a forerunner of the Modern
Olympics.

One of the London 2012 Olympic mascots has been named Wenlock in his honour,
cementing in history the crucial role he played in the modern international Olympic
Games.
In 1850, William Penny Brookes established the Wenlock Olympian Class, later
renamed the Wenlock Olympian Society, to "promote the moral, physical and
intellectual improvement of the inhabitants of the Town and neighbourhood of
Wenlock by the encouragement of outdoor recreation and by the award of prizes
annually at public meetings". To this end, the first Wenlock Olympian Games were
held in the town in that year. These games were intended for ‘every grade of man’
and included a mixture of athletic and traditional country sporting events.

Whilst pursuing his own Olympian Games in Wenlock, Brookes was also determined
to see his vision translated to a wider, international stage. He campaigned vigorously
and was in contact with the organisers of a revival of the Olympic Games in Athens,
sending £10 to be presented to the winner of ‘the Long Foot-Race’ event.

Brookes shared his vision for an international Olympian festival with a wealthy
Frenchman, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, who was visiting Much Wenlock. The young
aristocrat was inspired by what William Penny Brookes had achieved and, on his
return to France, Coubertin wrote:

“If the Olympic Games that Modern Greece has not yet been able to revive still
survives today, it is due, not to a Greek, but to Dr WP Brookes.”

Later, Coubertin used his influence and connections to hold an international

Congress at the Sorbonne, which then set up the modern International Olympic
Movement. Brookes was invited, but was too unwell to attend. Sadly the old doctor
died in Much Wenlock in 1895 aged 87, just four months before the first modern
International Olympic Games were held in Athens in April 1896 – the ultimate
realisation of his lifelong dream.

But the influence this visionary man had on a truly international event lives on
through the Wenlock Olympian Society that continues to hold the Wenlock Olympian
Games in the town.
 London 2012 vs Wenlock Olympian Games
London 2012
Venue 31 venues in London and across the
UK including: Olympics Stadium in East
London. Capacity: 80,000; Aquatic
Centre designed by acclaimed
international architect Zaha Hadid;
Weymouth Bay and Portland Harbour
will be the venue for the Olympic and
Paralympic Sailing competitions. It was
the first London 2012 Games venue to
be finished.
Organisers The London 2012 Games are delivered
by two key organisations - the London
2012 Organising Committee, headed by
Lord Sebastian Coe and the Olympic
Delivery Authority.
Events 26 sports broken down into 36
disciplines and approx 300 events
including aquatics, archery, athletics,
cycling and football.
Competitors Team GB competitors preparing for
London 2012 include diver Tom Daly,
cyclist Bradley Wiggins and heptathlon
champion Jessica Ennis. Other athletes
to watch include world record holder in
the 100m and 200m sprint Usain Bolt
and swimmer Ian Thorpe who is back in
training for the Games.
Dates Olympic Games 27 July-12 Aug 2012
Paralympic Games 29 Aug-9 Sept
2012
Ticket Ranging from £20 to £2,012
prices Available from 15 March at
www.tickets.london2012.com
Wenlock Olympian Games
Primarily held at Linden Fields, Much
Wenlock – the venue since the early years of
the Games in the 1850s. Other events such
as fencing held at Much Wenlock Leisure
Centre, archery at Eon Sports Ground in
Buildwas, tennis at Cound Tennis Club and
the golf at the Telford and Great Hay Golf
Course.
The Wenlock Olympian Society is dedicated
to preserving the ideals of William Penny
Brookes and organising the annual Games.
16 sports including archery, shooting,
triathlon and athletics, as well as none
Olympic sports (as deemed by the
International Olympic Committee) such as
golf, bowls and a junior biathlon.
Past competitors include Olympic Bronze
medallist archer Alison Williamson and
former world record holder for 5,000 metres
David Moorcroft.
8 – 11 July 2011
13 – 16 July 2012
Free
Competitor The Athletes' Village will include Much Wenlock offers a wide range of
lodgings residential apartments for around accommodation including the Raven Hotel
17,000 athletes and officials. and the Gaskell Arms.
Famous Everyone from Prince William and Famous Shropshire residents include John
spectators Harry to David Beckham are expected Challis aka Boycie from Only Fools and
to attend. Horses.

The Queen attended a demonstration Games

in 2003 with the Duke of Edinburgh.
Budget Estimated £7.301bn Circa £12,000

Wenlock Olympian Games then and now

The first Games, held in October 1850, were a mixture of athletics alongside
traditional country sports such as quoits, football and cricket. As well as sporting and
athletic events, some less energetic contests were also in the programme such as
knitting, arithmetic and creative writing. These early Games sometimes included a
fun event as well; once a wheelbarrow race, another year an old woman's race for a
pound of tea.

The Games were surrounded by pageantry and celebrations – not dissimilar to the
opening and closing ceremonies of today’s Olympics. A band led a procession of flag
bearers, competitors and officials as they marched through the decorated streets of
Much Wenlock to the competition ground.

Following William Penny Brookes’s death, the Wenlock Olympian Society kept the
tradition going by holding Annual Games. The Live Arts are held in March and
November, and the Sports meeting is still held every year in July in the town centred
on the Windmill Field, (later called the Linden Field) and now known as the Gaskell
Recreation Ground. There have been some gaps, most notably during the two World
Wars but the Games have been an almost constant presence in the town ever since.

Famous competitors over the years include Harold Langley who won the much-
coveted Wenlock Pentathlon Gold medal in 1923. He went on to represent Great
Britain in the Paris Olympics of 1924 alongside Harold Abrahams and Eric Liddle,
which was immortalised in the film Chariots of Fire. More recently in 1981, ten-year-
old Alison Williamson entered the archery competition and won silver. This was to be
the beginning of her illustrious sporting career as she went on to represent Great
Britain at the 2000 Sydney Games and 2004 Athens Games.

-ENDS-
For more information, please contact Gemma Peers at Fido PR
Email: gemma@trustfido.co.uk, Tel: 0161 2743311, Mobile: 0781 302 9961

Additional information

William Penny Brookes: www.wenlock-olympian-society.org.uk

Much Wenlock: www.muchwenlockguide.info
Shropshire: www.shropshiretourism.co.uk
Notes to editors

William Penny Brookes

William Penny Brookes’s lifelong work as a visionary and philanthropist was the
inspiration for the formation of the Modern International Olympics. He was born in
Much Wenlock in 1809 and he believed in the benefits of physical exercise and
education to better the working classes and established the Wenlock Olympian Class
(later the Wenlock Olympian Society) to promote this aim through an annual sporting
competition.

Brookes shared his vision for an International Olympian Festival with influential
Frenchman Baron de Coubertin who visited Much Wenlock in 1890 and was inspired
by what Brookes had achieved. The Frenchman went on to form the International
Olympic Congress and the first games of the modern Olympics took place in Athens
in 1896 – the ultimate realisation of Brookes’s lifelong dream. William Penny Brookes
died in December 1895, just four months before the first International Olympic
Games.

One of the London 2012 Olympic mascots has been named Wenlock in his honour,
cementing in history the crucial role he played as the forefather of the modern
Olympic Games. A film featuring Wenlock can be viewed at :
http://www.mylondon2012.com/mascots/ and http://www.virtual-
shropshire.co.uk/shropshire_news/wenlock-film.shtml

Wenlock Olympian Society

The first Games, held in October 1850, comprised of a mixture of athletics and
traditional country sports. Following Brookes’s death in 1895, the Wenlock Olympian
Society kept the tradition going and the Wenlock Olympian Society Annual Games
are still held every year in the town. You can explore the history of the Wenlock
Olympian Society and William Penny Brookes by completing the Olympian Trail in
Much Wenlock. The trail starts outside the Much Wenlock Visitor Information Centre
and winds around the town following bronze markers set in the ground.

Much Wenlock
Much Wenlock is one of the oldest settlements in Shropshire and has been a market
town for at least 700 years. The town lies on the Northeast end of Wenlock Edge
near to Ironbridge and Bridgnorth. This historic town is a warren of quaint streets,
black and white half-timbered buildings and limestone cottages. There are numerous
speciality shops and watering holes as well as the remains of a grand 12th century
priory.

Much Wenlock Visitor Information Centre

The Museum
High Street
Much Wenlock
TF13 6HR

Opening Hours: End of October to March

Tuesday and Friday 10.30am-1pm and 1.30pm-4pm
Saturday 10am-midday

April to End of October

Monday to Sunday 10.30am-1pm and 1.30pm-5pm
Telephone: 01952 727679

Shrewsbury Visitor Information Centre

Rowley's House
Barker Street
Shrewsbury
SY1 1QH

Opening Hours: October to April

Monday to Saturday 10am to 5pm
Closed on Sundays. Bank Holiday Mondays 10am to 4pm

May – September
Monday to Saturday 10am to 5pm
Sunday and Bank Holiday Mondays 10am to 4pm
Telephone: 01743 281 200