One of Britain's most impressive yet least-known sporting achievements is to be celebrated by Tameside Council.
On Friday, 25th May 2007, a statue commemorating Hyde Seal's treble of World Water Polo Championships in 1904-06 will be unveiled at Hyde Town Hall, Market Street, Hyde.
The master of ceremonies for the event will be popular BBC Radio Manchester broadcaster Allan Beswick, who is a keen swimmer.
Hyde Seal’s men’s team traveled to Paris in 1904 as English champions and took part in a competition organized by the French newspaper L’Auto and defeated the defending champions, Brussels, 14-2 in a match which was played in the River Marne.
The Seal players received a hero's welcome and were met at Godley Junction railway station by a band playing "Hail the Conquering Hero Comes".
The team included George Wilkinson who was to captain Great Britain to the Olympic water polo gold at the 1908 games in London and at Stockholm in 1912.
Hyde Seal returned to Paris in 1905 and 1906 to retain their title. Their championship trophy - the Spirit of the Whirlpool, designed by Max Blondat - will be at the unveiling as well as a ball from one of the finals and several medals.
However, the club's achievements did not end 100 years ago, and in the ensuing years it has produced swimmers such as Lillian Preece, who represented Great Britain at the 1948 Olympics and Sylvia Platt-Rogers who won a relay silver at the 1970 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh.
Various members will be at the unveiling including Olive Bowker who won the Leadbitter Knott Challenge Cup as schoolgirl champion of Hyde in 1932 and 1933.
Councillor Jacqueline Lane, Tameside Council's Project Head for Heritage and Tourism, said: "Hyde Seal's achievement cannot be understated. In 1904 there were only 21,000 people living in Hyde and for a team from such a small town to dominate a sport at a world level is nothing short of marvellous".
"But Hyde Seal has continued to do the people of Hyde, and indeed Tameside, proud in the 100 years since those victories in Paris. It is only right that the borough should recognise that through our ongoing and innovative street art project".
"The Hyde Seal statue will complement the statue commemorating the Chartist Movement which was unveiled at Hyde Town Hall in 2002".
The unveiling will take place at Hyde Town Hall, Market Street, Hyde, at 3.30pm on Friday, 25th May.
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For further details, contact Mike Pavasovic on 07967 916164.
British Swimming is the National Governing Body for Swimming, Diving, Synchronised Swimming, Water Polo and Open Water in Great Britain. It is responsible internationally for the high performance representation of the sport. The members of British Swimming are the three Home Countries national governing bodies of England (Amateur Swimming Association), Scotland (Scottish Amateur Swimming Association) and Wales. (Welsh Amateur Swimming Association) British Swimming seeks to enable its athletes to achieve gold medal success at the Olympics, Paralympics, World Championships and Commonwealth Games.
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