Len Arnold

19 years ago Len, and his wife Yvonne, set up their gymnastics club in an old industrial building. It was a disused bare shell with no lighting or heating, but they transformed it, carving out gymnastic landing pits from the concrete floor and installing a sprung competition floor. When the club faced a financial crisis, because the rent of the building escalated, they never considered closing , instead they sold their home and moved into the gym to keep the club going. The Europa Gym Centre now has 700 gymnasts and other activities such as boxing, weightlifting, akido, wrestling, self defence and dance classes attract more young people. Without Len and Yvonne's determination, thousands of kids would have missed out on gymnastics. They are truly inspirational and have put their entire lives into keeping the club going they are loved and respected in equal part and are true sports heroes.