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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

Water Polo
Melissa Rippon
Melissa ‘s outstanding talent was recognised early in her career. In 1997 at 16 years of age she was selected to represent Australia at the Junior Women's Water Polo Championships in Prague winning silver. Melissa has been a mainstay in the Australian team since 2000 beginning as a reserve member of the Gold winning team at the Sydney Olympics. Mel would make her Olympic debut in Athens 2004 followed by Bronze winning performances in Beijing and London.
Cricket
Michelle Goszko
A strong and elegant player, Michelle was selected to represent Australian in One Day Internationals in 1997 against New Zealand. Her Test debut would follow four years later in 2001 against England. Michelle would become known for her sparking test debut when she scored a double century etching her name in the history of women's cricket.
Soccer
Michelle Watson
Michelle Watson grew up in Georges Hall before moving to Condell Park
Swimming
Neville Hayes
Neville was the butterfly swimmer of Australia in the 1960's until his crown was wrestled away by Kevin Berry. He was selected to represent Australia at the Rome Olympic, winning silver in the 200m Butterfly and 4 x 100M Medley.
Track & Field
Nicole Boegman
Nicole made an outstanding contribution to her sport achieving international representation as an 18 year old in 1987. She represented Australia at 3 Olympic Games, 5 World Outdoor championships, 3 World Indoor Championships and 3 Commonwealth Games.
Surf Life Saving
Noel Cox
Noel's chosen sport of Surf Life Saving would see him achieve state representation in 1959 at the age of 22. In that year he reached the pinnacle of success by becoming the Australian Senior Surf Belt Champion and delivered the first gold medal for Wanda Surf Club.
Full Bore Rifle Shooting
Noel Irving
Noel was able to rise quickly through the levels and by 1953 was selected to shoot off for a place in the Australian Team travelling to Bisley, England.
Cricket
Olivia Magno
Olivia's sporting ability was recognised early in her career when she played for NSW in the U/18 in 1989/90-1990/91and U/21 in 1991/92-1992/93. Olivia was selected to represent Australia in 1995 in One Day Internationals against New Zealand and in the same year would make her Test debut at 23 years of age against New Zealand.
Athletics
Paul Croft
Paul is a distinguished Paralympian and coach with a rich history in sports, particularly in athletics and table tennis
Rugby League
Paul Dunn
Paul's early training in Orange junior teams would give him the inspiration to pursue a career in league and also instilled in him the sense of fair play for which he was noted throughout his representative career.In 1986 Paul would join Canterbury as part of the Bulldogs' build-up to defend its premiership and in the same year he would be selected represent Australia against Papua New Guinea and the undefeated Kangaroo tour of England and France would follow.
Rugby League
Paul Langmack
Paul was a key member throughout Canterbury's Dogs of War era in the mid to late 1980's adding both skill and toughness to the feared Bulldogs pack of forwards. His representative career was limited due to the presence of many lock forwards throughout the 1980's. He would only be selected to play in just four matches for NSW in 1987-88.
Athletics
Penny Just
Penny has been considered one of the all-time greats of Australian female distance running. She broke the Australian mile record twice, firstly in Vancouver and secondly in the famous Bislett Stadium at Oslo on the same night 27th July 1985. During her running career she successfully competed in race distances ranging from 1500 metres to 8 kilometres.
Archery
Peter Boukouvalas
Peter is an accomplished archer with significant achievements on the international stage. With a strong performance at various competitions, he has established a notable presence in archery with impressive rankings and participation in major events, including the 2024 Paris Olympics
Softball
Peter Clout
Peter's outstanding ability was recognised in 1991 when he represented NSW in the Under 19's team. Peter made his international debut in 1996 at the age of 23 when he was selected to represent Australia at the World Championships in the USA. He was a member of the Australian team to win Bronze in 2004 in New Zealand.
Wrestling
Peter Hogg
In 1974 Peter won the Gold Medal at the City of Sydney Championships in the 48kg division. By 1975 he had become the Senior Flyweight Champion.
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.