Brian Seymour has given a lot to athletics over a long time. Photo / David Haxton
Brian Seymour has given a lot to athletics over a long time. Photo / David Haxton
Humbled is how Brian Seymour feels about being made a life member of Athletics Wellington.
Seymour, the club captain of the Paraparaumu Track and Field Club, received the accolade with fellow recipient Amanda Goldsmith, who is part of the Olympic Harriers club.
“I was completely surprised,” Seymour said.
“Ifelt humbled.”
It was an honour richly deserved for someone who has given a lot to athletics throughout many years.
His interest in athletics developed when he grew up on a farm in Ohau, just south of Levin.
When he started at Horowhenua College, he met a woman called Molly Dorne, who lived nearby.
Dorne, who was heavily involved in a range of sports, used to take students to various settlements such as Levin, Ōtaki, Shannon, Foxton, as they had combined athletic and cycling clubs associated with them.
The Hastings Highland Games 100 yards finish featuring Logan Aikman, left, who was the national 110 yards hurdles champ, John Taylor, centre, and Brian Seymour, on the right.
“We’d be racing four nights a week as part of our training.”
Dorne was “a huge influence on all of us”.
One day, Dorne took Seymour and some of his mates to Waiouru to introduce them to army captain Frank Sharpley, who coached various runners.
Sharpley became Seymour’s coach and they would correspond via letters.
When Sharpley was transferred to Ardmore, Seymour would visit him on weekends and run on a 200m cinder track that Sharpley had created.
At the age of 16 Seymour went to his first national championships, in Christchurch, in 1960, and made the junior finals in the 220 yards.
The next year, in 1961, the nationals were in Christchurch again, with Seymour winning the junior 440 yards and coming second in the 220 yards.
“During that year I got selected to play [wing] for the Manawatu-Horowhenua team to play against the British and Irish Lions.”
He was part of the Paraparaumu team that won the Horowhenua title three years in a row in 1967, 1968 and 1969.
But his love of athletics remained strong and in the early 1970s, when his daughter Michelle was about 7, his wife Venna joined her up at the then-named Paraparaumu Athletic Club.
“A year after that I got dragged in as treasurer ... and then got involved in coaching and administration.”
He took extra-mural papers to achieve diplomas in level 1 and 2 coaching and sports management diploma.
He’s coached countless athletes throughout the years including national representatives Michael Craig, David Falealili, Donald MacDonald and his own daughter Michelle, who represented New Zealand at the 1990 Commonwealth Games, in Auckland, and set records before Zoe Hobbs put her name to them this year.
Brian Seymour, right, with Paraparaumu Athletic Club members Michael Craig, Roger Tepuni and daughter Michelle Seymour before the 1990 Commonwealth Games.
Seymour was a coach attached to the New Zealand team at the Commonwealth Games, in Victoria, Canada, in 1994.
He helped set up the New Zealand Children’s Athletics Association as well as the Colgate Games.
He also has various other roles, such as Athletics Wellington chairman, but his affinity has always been with the Paraparaumu club, which was very strong when he started.
“Back in those days there were no other sports in the summer apart from athletics and tennis.
“We had a big membership.
“During club nights, the grass banks would be full of parents.”
