Children at The Good Shepherd Primary School dressed up in togas, swore an Olympic oath and played fanfares as they celebrated the Olympic movement and welcomed a gold medal-winning rower to the school last Wednesday.

Simon Dennis MBE, Olympic gold medallist in the men's eights rowing at Sydney in 2000 and a Fulham resident, was accompanied by Good Shepherd parent and 1993 World Rowing Champion Annamarie Phelps, who also competed at the Atlanta games in 1996.

The presentation by the children included trumpet fanfares by the school band; an Olympic oath ceremony with pupils in togas; gym and field sports demonstrations, with the help of a rubber javelin; talks on the history of the games and a presentation of gold medals, made by nursery pupils, to the visiting athletes. The event followed an inspirational visit by two other Olympic gold medal-winning rowers, Garry Herbert and Tim Foster, last month.

A display of Olympic posters, tracksuits, photos and other sporting memorabilia has also been put up in the school entrance. The project has been supported by the British Olympic Association and the Amateur Rowing Association.

Cathy Doogan, headteacher of The Good Shepherd Primary School, in Gayford Road, W12, said: "The children were really inspired by Garry and Tim's visit last month and were excited about welcoming our other guests. They have been learning about the history of the Olympics in classes as well as designing posters and rehearsing for this presentation, which they wanted to make into a really special occasion. Pupils from every class and every year group were involved."

Annamarie Phelps, who has two boys at the school, said: "The school is very into sport and I thought it would be great to introduce the children to some Olympic athletes and let them find out more about the Olympic movement and the local connections it has, including the events staged at the White City stadium during the 1908 games as well as the athletes who have come from this area including Garry Herbert and Linford Christie."

Education deputy, Cllr David Williams, who attended the event, said: "The Good Shepherd Primary School has really entered into the spirit of the Olympics and the children are learning about the borough's history of sporting prowess. Our schools, sports development team and local sporting organisations are working hard to develop the talent in our community. With inspiring visitors, and everyone's hard work, we might have a few more Olympians at the Good Shepherd and our other schools."

June 21, 2004