Plans submitted for steel statue honouring local legend marathon runner

Elgan Hearn, Local Democracy Reporter

One of Wales’ “bona fide legends” will be commemorated in steel as plans have been lodged with a Welsh council to erect a statue of his likeness outside a sports centre.

Alyson Tippings of Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council’s environment and regeneration department has applied to place the 2.85-metre-high statue of marathon runner Steve Jones at Ebbw Vale Sports Centre on Lime Avenue.

Destination manager Ms Tipping explained that talks had been held between her department, the Sports Centre and other groups with an interest in the project.

Silhouette

Ms Tipping said: “The project is being delivered by a group that includes local authority staff, Aneurin Leisure staff, local councillors and a representative of the group who fundraised for the project.

“Steve Jones and his family have been involved in the selection of the design.”

They selected a proposal by artist Tim Ward for the sculpture.

The sculpture is to be a silhouette running figure mounted on a locally quarried limestone boulder.

The total height of the proposal will be 3.4 metres and will be “created” in 10mm marine grade 316 stainless steel, laser cut to shape with laser etched text in Welsh and English.

The figure will be 2.85 metres high with a width of 1.5 metres and shows Steve Jones wearing the number 10 breaking the world record in 1984 when winning the Chicago Marathon.

The steelwork will be securely fixed by resin fixed into a base on a boulder.

A decision on the application is expected by September 2.

Honour

Olympian and former marathon world-record holder Mr Jones was awarded Blaenau Gwent’s highest honour when councillors voted unanimously to award him the Freedom of the County Borough at a meeting in January.

In April, Mr Jones joined councillors and guests online from his home in Boulder, Colorado in United States of America at an extraordinary council meeting where he received the honour.

The mover to award Mr Jones the freedom of Blaenau Gwent started last year when the council were asked by Lee Aherne chairman of Parc Bryn Bach running club, if anything would be done to commemorate the 40th anniversary of his world record run at the Chicago marathon.

This feat took place on October 21, 1984.

He held the marathon record for a British runner for 33 years until Mo Farah broke it in 2018.

At the meeting Mr Aherne said: “I was very luck in the 1980s to have stood on the starting lines when Steve was the best marathon runner in the world.”

“You are a bona fide legend.”

Mr Jones told councillors: “You can’t believe how honoured I feel to be accepting this award. Ebbw Vale is where I started running, my roots and family are still in Ebbw Vale.

“All the other things I have done in my life, even receiving my MBE from Princess Anne may stand second to this honour.”