Nigel Walker (athlete)

Last updated

Nigel Walker
Birth nameNigel Walker
Date of birth (1963-06-15) 15 June 1963 (age 61)
Place of birth Cardiff, Wales
Height1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Weight79 kg (12 st 6 lb)
Rugby union career
Position(s) Wing
Senior career
YearsTeamApps(Points)
1992-1998 Cardiff 121 (392)
International career
YearsTeamApps(Points)
1993-1998 Wales 17 (60)

Nigel Walker (born 15 June 1963) is a former Welsh track and field athlete and Wales international rugby union player. He is currently Welsh Rugby Union's acting CEO, after the resignation of Steve Phillips. [1] He was born in Cardiff.

Walker represented Great Britain and Northern Ireland at the 1984 Summer Olympics in the 110 metres hurdles. In 1988 and 1992 he failed to make the squad for the Summer Olympics and in 1992 turned to rugby union. Walker holds the fastest non-winning time for the 200-metre hurdles. At Cardiff in 1991, he ran 22.77 seconds into a 0.3 m/s headwind. [2]

As a rugby player, he played on the wing for Cardiff RFC. Walker made his Wales debut on 6 March 1993 in the five nations match against Ireland. He went on to win 17 caps for Wales, scoring 12 tries and making his final appearance 21 February 1998 against England.

Walker was a participant in Catchphrase, a Welsh learning programme broadcast on Radio Wales in 2000. [3] Walker was appointed Head of Sport at BBC Wales in 2001. [4] In 2010, Walker became the National Director at the English Institute of Sport (EIS). [5] In 2018, celebrating Black History Month in the United Kingdom, Walker was included in a list of 100 "Brilliant, Black and Welsh" people. [6]

Walker left his role at the EIS in Autumn 2021, [7] to take up the position of Performance Director at the Welsh Rugby Union. [8] He became the acting CEO of the WRU in January 2023 following the resignation of Steve Phillips. [9]

Contrary to a frequent rumour, he did not participate in Gladiators . Walker dispelled the rumour: "I didn’t compete in Gladiators. It’s a big myth. Glen Webbe did, I didn’t. I have corrected it on Wikipedia three times and it keeps coming back up". [10]

International competitions

YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventNotes
Representing Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain / Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales
1984 Olympic Games Los Angeles, United States semi-final110 m hurdles14.07
1985 European Indoor Championships Piraeus, Greece 5th60 m hurdles7.72
1986 Commonwealth Games Edinburgh, Scotland 4th110 m hurdles13.69
European Championships Stuttgart, West Germany 4th110 m hurdles 13.52 (wind: +2.0 m/s)
1987 European Indoor Championships Liévin, France 3rd60 m hurdles7.65
World Indoor Championships Indianapolis, United States 3rd60 m hurdles7.66
World Championships Rome, Italy semi-final110 m hurdles13.68
1989 European Indoor Championships The Hague, Netherlands semi-final60 m hurdles7.80
1990 Commonwealth Games Auckland, New Zealand 5th110 m hurdles13.78
European Championships Split, Yugoslavia 12th (sf)110 m hurdles 13.84 (wind: 0.0 m/s)
1991 World Indoor Championships Seville, Spain semi-final60 m hurdles7.65
1992 European Indoor Championships Genoa, Italy semi-final60 m hurdles7.82

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wales national rugby union team</span> National rugby team

The Wales national rugby union team represents Wales in men's international rugby union. Its governing body, the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU), was established in 1881, the same year that Wales played their first international against England. The team plays its home matches at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, which replaced Cardiff Arms Park as the national stadium of Wales in 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Celtic Warriors</span> Rugby team

The Celtic Warriors were a rugby union team from Wales, who played in the 2003–04 Celtic League and the 2003–04 Heineken Cup following the introduction of regional rugby union teams in Wales. They were effectively a temporary merger of Pontypridd RFC and Bridgend RFC. The Celtic Warriors played just one season before disbanding.

The Welsh Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in the country of Wales, recognised by the sport's international governing body, World Rugby.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cardiff Rugby</span> Professional Welsh regional rugby union team

Cardiff Rugby are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams. Based in Cardiff, the team play at Cardiff Arms Park. Originally formed in 1876, from 2003 to 2021 the first team was known as the Cardiff Blues before rebranding back to Cardiff Rugby prior to the start of the 2021–22 season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scarlets</span> Rugby team based in Llanelli, Wales

The Scarlets are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams and are based in Llanelli, Wales. Their home ground is the Parc y Scarlets stadium. They play in the United Rugby Championship and in European Professional Club Rugby competitions. The club was originally named the Llanelli Scarlets but was renamed at the start of the 2008–09 rugby season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rugby union in Wales</span> National sport of Wales

Rugby union in Wales is considered a large part of Welsh national culture. Rugby union is thought to have reached Wales in the 1850s, with the national body, the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) being formed in 1881. Wales are considered to be one of the most successful national sides in Rugby Union, having won the most Six Nations Championships after England, as well as having reached 3 World Cup semi finals in 1987, 2011 and 2019, having finished 3rd in the inaugural competition and having finished 4th in 2011 in a repeat of the first third place play-off. The Welsh team of the 1970s is considered to be one of the greatest national teams of all time. As of November 2021, they are ranked 8th in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cardiff RFC</span> Welsh rugby union club, based in Cardiff

Cardiff Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The club was founded in 1876 and played their first few matches at Sophia Gardens, shortly after which relocating to Cardiff Arms Park where they have been based ever since.

Sir Thomas Gerald Reames Davies CBE DL is a Welsh former rugby union wing who played international rugby for Wales between 1966 and 1978. He is one of a small group of Welsh players to have won three Grand Slams including Gareth Edwards, J. P. R. Williams, Ryan Jones, Adam Jones, Gethin Jenkins and Alun Wyn Jones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryan Jones</span> Welsh rugby union player

Ryan Paul Jones is a Wales former international rugby union player who played at number eight, blindside flanker or second row. He was involved in three Grand Slam wins, in 2005, as captain in 2008, and 2012. He is one of a small group of Welsh players to have won three Grand Slams including Gerald Davies, Gareth Edwards, J.P.R. Williams, Adam Jones, Gethin Jenkins and Alun Wyn Jones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dwayne Peel</span> Former Welsh rugby union player

Dwayne John Peel is a Welsh rugby union coach and former player. He was the most capped scrum-half for the Wales national rugby union team with 76 caps, until his record was surpassed by Mike Phillips on 16 March 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rodney Parade</span> Stadium in Newport, Wales, United Kingdom

Rodney Parade is a stadium in the city of Newport, South Wales. It is located on the east bank of the River Usk in Newport city centre. The ground is on Rodney Road, a short walk from the city's central bus and railway stations via Newport Bridge or Newport City footbridge. There is no spectator car park at the ground but a number of multi-storey car parks are nearby.

Gareth John James Jenkins is a Welsh former rugby union player and coach. Born in Burry Port, Carmarthenshire, he played for Llanelli RFC for 17 years from his debut in September 1969. He was appointed coach of the club in 1982. In 2003, he was appointed as coach of the newly formed Llanelli Scarlets regional side, guiding them to the Celtic League title in their first season. Following the resignation of Steve Hansen as coach of the Wales national team, Jenkins applied for the position and was one of two finalists only for Mike Ruddock to be appointed without applying. Jenkins finally took over as Wales coach when Ruddock resigned during the 2006 Six Nations, but his tenure was unsuccessful, winning just six of his 20 games in charge. He was sacked on 30 September 2007, the day after Wales failed to qualify for the quarter-finals of the 2007 Rugby World Cup. He returned to the Scarlets as their head of regional development and recruitment in June 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keith Rowlands</span> British Lions & Wales international rugby union footballer

Keith Alun Rowlands, was a Welsh international lock rugby union player and later administrator, who was the first chief executive officer of the International Rugby Board.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gareth Davies (rugby union, born 1955)</span> Wales and British and Irish Lions rugby union player

William Gareth Davies is a former Wales and British and Irish Lions international rugby union player and former chairman of the Welsh Rugby Union.

Glenfield Michael Charles Webbe is a Welsh former international rugby union player. Often incorrectly stated to be the first Black Welshman to represent the Welsh national rugby union team, he has since been described as "Wales first black icon".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RGC 1404</span> Welsh rugby union club, based in Colwyn Bay

RGC 1404, formerly "Gogledd Cymru", is a rugby union team founded in 2008 and based in Colwyn Bay, Conwy. They currently play in the Welsh Premier Division; after winning Division 1 East at the first attempt in 2012–13, they spent three seasons in the Welsh Championship before earning promotion to the Premier Division in 2015–16. They finished fourth in their first season in the top flight, but also won the WRU Challenge Cup for the first time. They play at Eirias Stadium, which has a capacity of just over 6,000.

Tavis Knoyle is a Wales international rugby union footballer who plays at scrum-half.

Welsh regional rugby is the top tier of professional Welsh club rugby and is composed of the Scarlets, Ospreys, Cardiff Rugby and the Dragons which compete in the United Rugby Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Welsh people</span> Welsh people of black African/Afro-Caribbean descent

Black Welsh people are inhabitants of Wales who have an African or an Afro-Caribbean background and are black. Wales is home to one of the United Kingdom's oldest black communities, and Tiger Bay in Cardiff has housed a large Somali population since the development of the port in the 19th century. The 2011 census reported that there were more than 18,000 Welsh-African people in Wales.

David Young is a Welsh rugby union coach and former rugby union and rugby league player. He was most recently director of rugby at Cardiff Blues.

References

  1. "Nigel Walker at EIS".
  2. "WRFU Press conference Cardiff Arms Park 25 February 1993".
  3. "Catchphrase at BBC Wales".
  4. "Walker to lead BBC Wales Sport". BBC Sport. 13 July 2001. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  5. "Interview: Nigel Walker". sportsmanagement.co.uk. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  6. Wightwick, Abbie (28 September 2018). "Brilliant, Black and Welsh: A celebration of 100 African Caribbean and African Welsh people". WalesOnline. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  7. "Nigel Walker OBE to depart the EIS after 11 trailblazing years". EIS. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  8. "WRU appoints former Wales wing Nigel Walker as performance director". Rugbypass. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  9. "WRU chief Phillips resigns as Walker steps in". BBC Sport. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
  10. Thomas, Simon (5 August 2018). "The extraordinary Nigel Walker interview". WalesOnline. Retrieved 30 August 2021.