Speaking recently of his schooldays, Geraint said, "These were great days, never had so much fun before or since". This is his story.

Geraint Griffiths (1960-69), BSc Mech Eng, MSc Optometry, M.ASv PMCOptom, was born in Cardiff in 1948, but he grew up in the little market town of Oswestry where he was a day boy at Oswestry School. This highly intelligent, and multi-talented Old Oswestrian suffered from an inferiority complex at school having failed the 11 plus and other important exams, and he was later surprised to learn, when he took the Mensa Test, that he was only two points short of membership. He and his family had been completely unaware at the time of his disappointing 11 plus result that he suffered from dyslexia and sporting dyspraxia, which also later contributed to a dismal failure on his international high jumping debut in France. A decision was then made by Geraint's parents to send him to Oswestry School to help with his education.

Geraint, aged 17, comtemplating the future on the Maes-y-Llan

Geraint's first love, and earliest sporting interest, was swimming, and he recalls spending much of his time in the town baths where he and his friends learned to swim and dive under the over-watchful eyes of Mr Hughes 'The Baths', a strict disciplinarian who, threatened daily to throw "every jack man of them" out. After years of determined effort Geraint became a proficient diver and swimmer, in the process of which he broke several school records and became Shropshire diving champion.

Oswestry. Town baths during the fifties.

Eventually, after discovering that he could high jump he abandoned the daily ablutions to concentrate on athletics. He quickly discovered that a side-on approach to the scissors technique improved his performance and, later, his adoption of the straddle immediately added another four inches to the height he could achieve. This face-down over the bar method often led to very bumpy landings on hard surfaces before the arrival of raised soft beds to cushion the fall.

Geraint in full flight as he straddles the bar in the sixties.

Geraint went on to break the school high jump record, which had stood for 100 years, with a leap of 5' 10". Not only this, he also broke the school long jump and shot put records, and in pursuance of his athletics career after leaving Oswestry School he broke his Gloucester Athletic Club's record, the Welsh record (6' 8.5"), and found himself competing internationally for Britain in a gauloises' smoke-filled indoor arena in Orleans, France. Failing a third attempt at the opening height he left the arena, disconsolate, and uncertain as to why he had been unable to clear, for him, the modest height of 6' 1''. 

Geraint did not know this at the time, but it was a seminal moment in his life. Notwithstanding the disappointment of a seemingly poor performance on the international stage, he carried on jumping, eventually joining the Masters Circuit. In The World Masters Championship in Eugene, Oregon, Geraint broke the British record twice, and became the first British athlete over 40 years old to clear 6', a record which stood for 11 years. During the Masters years Geraint's best place finish was fifth, and he was finally forced into retirement at the age of 55 by a disintegrating cartilage in his right hip. 

Newspaper report of Geraint's success at the veterans' games in Glasgow.

Thus it was that in the early 2000s, whilst hobbling down Loughborough High Street in tears from the severe pain in his hip, Geraint crept into a health food shop and came across a book that would change his life forever. The book in question was entitled Eat to Beat Arthritis ". The pain became manageable and hope returned.

Geraint had been working in the field of Optometry since 1980 and in 1993 he had been introduced to the new subject of Sportsvision. It is impossible in such a short article to do justice to Geraint's considerable achievements and ground-breaking research in the field of children's vision, optometry, and sportsvision during the ensuing 10 years, which culminated in critical scientific breakthroughs. Suffice to say that it was in the early 2000s that Geraint concluded that vision, exercise, sport and diet are all inextricably linked, and he went on to write, amongst other things, his diploma in Sportsvision practice which is an holistic consideration of all aspects of sport, vision, exercise and psychology.

 
Palais des Sports, Orleans.       

It was during this time that it became clear to Geraint why he had failed to produce his best in that smoke filled sporting arena in France. Unbeknown to him at the time, he was suffering from sporting dyspraxia and it was impossible for him to judge the distance of a horizontal bar in a poorly lit, smokey stadium because of a misalignment of his eyes.   

In 2007 Geraint started a new high street practice and founded the Association of Sports and School Practitioners  (ASvP). Their company, SVUK Ltd, of which Geraint is Managing Director, delivers annual conferences and diplomas in Sport and Schoolvision practice. Geraint is passionate about his work within the Association, which is currently 34 strong here and abroad, and he is driven by a sense of duty to share their ideas with colleagues.

Geraint (centre) with members of his Association.

Coming full circle, the 1960s golden era of athletics at Oswestry School, of which Geraint was part, recently spilt over into 2023 when, at the tender age of 75, Geraint Griffiths, the Peter Pan of the pool, came third in the individual medley, 100 metres swimming race at the English National Masters Championships, held in Sheffield at the end of October.

Well done Geraint for a splendid effort! You are a credit to Oswestry School, and we are all proud of you.

Geraint Griffiths today, wearing his newly acquired bronze medal.