London 2012 blog

The venue for Wheelchair Archery and Wheelchair Tennis during the Games, Eton Manor, has a strong sporting heritage, as we discovered recently.

Firstly, the sports ground used by the Eton Manor Boys’ Club will form part of the London 2012 site. Secondly, the running track from Wembley used for the London 1948 Olympic Games had been re-laid on the Eton Manor site.

The running track:

As well as the athletics track, the Eton Manor site provided facilities for an incredible range of sports - including football, rugby, squash, tennis, cricket, bowling, putting and swimming (an outdoor pool, of course!). The main clubhouse down the road in Hackney Wick provided a gymnasium and many other facilities, including a shooting range in the basement. The Olympic connections of the Eton Manor Boys’ Club also include Olympic boxing medallists Harry Mallin, Fred Mallin and Nicky Gargano.

During 2007-2008 Villiers Park Educational Trust has been running an oral history project involving a group of students from George Mitchell School in Leyton and recording the memories of the former members of the Eton Manor Boys’ Club. These recordings, together with many wonderful photos and other archive materials, are now available at the Bishopsgate Institute in London.

Former members of Eton Manor Boys' Club meet students from Leyton:



Find out more about the history of Eton Manor Boys’ Club and the oral history project