John Atkinson - a British Legend

The U.S.Magazine 'International Gymnast' appreciates the incomparybly career of the British legend John Atkinson, who is retiring from a national coaching career that has lasted 43 years, including the last 30 spent as the head coach of the British men's team.
At a celebration dinner held Saturday evening in Shropshire, England, hundreds gathered to honor the career of British legend John Atkinson...
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and Barcelona 1992), 14 world championships (from Varna 1974 through Tianjin 1999), nine European Championships (from 1979 Essen to 1994 Prague), as well as innumerable other international events since 1967.

'It was just incredible!' Atkinson told IG of Saturday evening's celebration. 'Everybody says it was better organized than an opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, and I am really proud of my team from the World Class Performance Department, who have done all this work! It was a moment in our lives that we shall keep and treasure.'
The celebration continued into the early hours of the morning, said Atkinson's wife, former rhythmic world champion Vera Marinova-Atkinson. 'It was posh but friendly, serious but still with lots of humor,' she said.
Witnessing the 'This Is Your Life'-style tribute were 280 friends and colleagues of Atkinson. Among those on hand in Shropshire were the FIG's Slava Corn, Norbert Bueche, and Andre Gueisbuhler, former FIG president Yuri Titov, Russian Gymnastics Federation president Leonid Arkayev, FIG technical committee members Nelli Kim and Hardy Fink, decorated Bulgarian coach Nikola Nikolov, Professors Vladimir Smolevsky and Craig Sharp, David Kerwin of the FIG Sports Science Commission, John Aldridge of the FIG Medical Commission, and Richard Callicot, Chairman of the UK Sport.

Video taped messages were sent from several dignitaries who were unable to attend, including FIG President Bruno Grandi and British Olympic Association Chief Executive Simon Clegg.

Atkinson's involvement in the promotion of gymnastics has been widespread and impacting on both the national and international levels. From 1989 to 1993, Atkinson served as Chairman of British Institute of Sports Coaches. From 1993-2000, he was the Chairman of the Coaches Advisory and Steering Committees of the British Olympic Association. He was a founding member of the International Federation of Sports Acrobatics. He has been a member of the FIG's Executive Committee since 2000 and president of the FIG Sports Aerobics Commission since 1997.

He organized several key international events held in Great Britain, including the 1991 University Games in Sheffield, the 1992 FIG Men's Intercontinental Brevet Course, the 1995 European Youth Olympic Days in Bath, the 1996 Women's European Championships in Birmingham, the 2000 World Cup Final in Glasgow, and the Glasgow Grand Prix from 1997-2003.

Atkinson has run courses for the FIG/IOC Solidarity movement in Oceania, Singapore, Bangladesh, Swaziland and Zimbabwe, and worked on other courses in Vietnam, Indonesia, Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka, Jordan, Iran, Syria, Venezuela and Nepal.

Atkinson has also received numerous awards and honors, including the Goscom Sport Medal of the Soviet Union in 1988 and the International Award of Merit from the Australian Gymnastics Federation in 1990. He was named the Coach of the Year in both 1987 and 1988 by the British Institute of Sports Coaches. In 1989, he was named a Member of the British Empire (MBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for his services to Sport and Coaching in Great Britain.

On Monday, Atkinson celebrated his 66th birthday. In what capacity he will continue his work with the FIG and international consulting remains to be seen, says his wife.
'But nobody, least of all myself, trusts he will concentrate on gardening or regular car-washing—a real pity,' she joked.
Source: International Gymnast, online