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Sporting Hall of Fame

The Sporting Hall of Fame is an educational resource that acknowledges and honours members of the Bankstown community for their outstanding sporting achievements.

 

About the Hall of Fame

​In August 2011, Council endorsed the proposal to revive the Bankstown Sporting Hall of Fame within the new Centre of Excellence constructed at Bankstown Memorial Park.

The Sporting Hall of Fame is an educational resource that acknowledges and honours members of the Bankstown community for their outstanding sporting achievements. The Hall of Fame serves as a point of interest to residents, visitors, sport enthusiasts and school children.

In 1988, Council and Bankstown Sports Club established a Sporting Hall of Fame as part of the Bicentenary Program. On 26 November 1988, 101 names, representing 25 different sports were unveiled on a roll of honour or board located at Bankstown Sports Club. The original intention was for Council to add new names as they qualify, however, this only happened in 1991 when a further 7 names were recognised and added to the board. Athletes inducted into the Hall of Fame during this period included Steve and Mark Waugh, John and Isla Konrads and Terry Lamb to name a few. The 2012 Bankstown Sporting Hall of Fame recognises all inductees from t​he 1988 Hall of Fame by automatically inducting them into the new Sporting Hall of Fame.

In 2012, the Steering Committee setup by representatives from Council, Bankstown Sports, Bankstown-Canterbury Torch Newspaper and Bankstown District Cricket Club called for nominations from the community to form a new induction cycle at the official opening of the new facility in March 2013. From the nominations, 23 athletes and administrators were chosen by the Committee to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Among the athletes inducted were Hazem El Masri, Brett Emerton, Ian Thorpe and Bilal 'Billy the Kid' Dib.

Sporting Hall of Fame​ inductees
Search by sport category

Athletics

Baseball

Basketball

Boxing

Cricket

Cycling

Gymnastics

Rugby League

Rugby Union

Soccer

Swimming

Touch Football

Track & Field

Weightlifting

Wrestling

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Volleyball
George Silis
In 1953 George began playing Volleyball in Australia and by 1961 was considered the best all round Volleyball Player in NSW.George also assisted in the development of volleyball at district, state and national level. His credits include international tournaments administration, selection, coaching, playing and his greatest interest of school volleyball development.
Baseball
Glenn Williams
Glenn demonstrated his playing ability early and in 1986 aged 11 he was selected as the NSW Claxton Shield Batboy. His playing career spanned across 20 years until 2006. Glenn wore the green and gold for Australian at two Olympic Games - Sydney and in Athens. He was credited by his peers as being one of the most inspirational and motivating players on the 2004 Olympic Qualifying campaign and the team won the Silver medal.
Wrestling
Gordon Smith
In 1971, Gordon represented Australia at Junior Level Wrestling in the Bantamweight Division at the World Championship in Japan. He would again don the green and gold for Australian at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. He was the youngest participant for Australia (aged 22 years 37 days) and represented Australia for five years until 1976 at the San Diego World Championships.
Swimming
Graham Windeatt
Graham is considered as one of Australia's greatest distance swimmers. At 16 years of age in 1970, he was selected to represent Australia at the Edinburgh Commonwealth Games, winning Gold in the 1,500m.
Cricket
Grahame Thomas
Few players have matched Grahame's elegance and versatility in shot production. He enjoyed a successful playing career for NSW and Australia between 1957 and 1966. He played eight Test matches for Australia including trips to NZ, Jamaica and South Africa. While playing over sixty eight First Class matches for NSW, the graceful, powerful right-hand strokemaker would achieve a average of 40.32, which would include 17 centuries.
Rugby League
Greg Brentnall
Originally from Wagga Wagga in country NSW, Greg would demonstrate early his strong kicking game and catching under pressure. Under the new game where the ‘bomb' was such an integral part, kicking and catching prowess was vital in a fullback's credentials. Greg's precise timing and power of his left foot kick made him a star in own right
Full Bore Rifle Shooting
Gus Dehn
Gus achieved national representation when he travelled to Bisley in the UK as a member of the Australian Team and represented NSW from 1954 to 1956
Softball
Hayden Mathews
Hayden, a Picnic Point local, started his international softball career in 2014 when he played for the Australian under 19s team at the ISF World Cup
Rugby League
Hazem El Masri
Hazem was considered an exciting, unpredictable try-scoring winger, and a phenomenally consistent goal-kicker and would become a role model for a new generation of rugby league fans. Hazem was selected to represent Australia in 2002 Test against New Zealand; this would be his only appearance wearing the green and gold.
Soccer
Ian Holmes
Ian's extensive involvement in soccer administration and management spans several decades, reflecting his dedication and influence in the sport at various levels
Swimming
Ian Thorpe
Ian first came to International prominence at the 1997 at the Pan-Pacific meet when he finished second in the 400 freestyle. He was only 14 years old. By 1998 he would win both the 200 and 400 freestyle events at the World Championships. At the 2000 Sydney Olympics he would win three gold and two silver medals and set a world record for the 400m Freestyle event..Ian would compete at the World Championships in 2001, winning the 200, 400 and 800 metre freestyle events, all in world record times, and also swam on three winning relay teams, becoming the first person to win six gold medals at a single World Championship.
Swimming
Ilsa Konrads
Ilsa was born in Latvia and arrived in Australia as a five year old after leaving war torn Europe behind. The family eventually moved to Sydney after short stays in rural New South Wales. As a 13-year-old in 1958 Ilsa stunned the nation when she broke two women's freestyle world records.
Cycling
Jack Walsh
Jack became one of Australia's elite cyclists having won 25 Australian Championship Titles.
Soccer
Jacob Burns
Jacob Geoffrey Burns is an Australian former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder
Archery
James Larven
Jim's life as an archer began as a 13 year old at Macquarie Fields Bow hunters in 1965 and he became an active field archer and bow hunter. In the late 1960's he changed to competitive shooting, entering and coming last in the AAA National Championships. Same event the next year, he became the first NSW and the fifth archer in Australia to shoot a 1200 star.
Booking information

Guided tours of the Hall of Fame are available by appointment with the Bankstown District Cricket Club and are suitable for families, schools and community organisations.

Memorabilia from athletes is displayed throughout the facility and the interactive touchscreens allow users to scroll through the inducted athletes and see their achievements.

The Hall of Fame also operates as a business meeting space ideal for workshops or seminars. It can seat 25 people board style or 60 people theatre style with a kitchen available for use.

Click here for more information on using the Hall of Fame