Island Life Magazine Ltd February/March 2014 | Page 67

FASHION HEALTH & BEAUTY

Clare leads from the front
By Peter White

C

lare Griffin has had close ties with
the West Wight Sports Centre
since its inception, and has been
its manager for the past 25 years.
So with cuts in funding threatening the
very future of the charitable facility that
serves thousands of Islanders, it is hardly
surprising that Clare is not just going to sit
back and do nothing about it.
Instead she is planning a gruelling
summer to help raise much-needed funds
to ensure its future. Clare will be leading
by example and running a half marathon
on June 8; swimming across the Solent on
July 6, and taking part in the West Wight
Triathlon on September 28. The latter
entails a 400-metre swim, 25-kilometre
cycle and five-kilometre run.
As a youngster Clare was a member
of the West Wight Swimming Club and
attended the opening of the original
open-air pool in 1977. It evolved after
a group of Island parents decided they
needed a swimming base instead of
transporting their children around the
Island seeking suitable facilities, and they
managed to raise sufficient cash to begin
the project.
Lord Mountbatten officially opened the
pool, although in those days, as Clare
recalls: “The changing rooms had walls

made of hardboard which bowed when
they got wet, and there was a calor gas
heater for warmth.
“Swimming continued outdoors until
there was enough money to build the roof.
The West Wight Swimming Pool Trust
was formed to run the project, and I was
appointed manager. In 1991 a small pool
was added at a cost of £80,000, which
was raised in less than 18 months. It was
opened by Lord Mountbatten’s daughter.”
Talk of building a Sports Centre
continued through the 1990s and with
a lottery grant through Totland Parish
Council, and IW Council funding, it was
opened in 2000. Although it helped

Lord Mountbatten presenting the Barry Trophy to Sally Pitman & Clare Griffin with Ron Smith & Shirley Miles.

produce Olympic swimmer Darren Mew,
there has been a constant struggle for
survival.
“We have been fortunate to have an
annual grant from the IW Council, and
although they still support us the grant has
been cut; will be cut again this year, and
eventually end, which is a huge chunk out
of the funds we n VVB