It was with great sadness that the Officers and staff of Northern Athletics and I heard of the death of Alan Mason.
In the 1970s and 80s Alan was an effective and willing worker for athletics in Lancashire and the North West and in 1987 he was invited to join the Northern Counties AA (as it was then) to chair the newly formed Development Committee. The appointment of a Development Officer for the North was a recent initiative and Alan was recognised as a person with the skills and knowledge to coordinate development activities and act as the line manager for the new role.
Alan proved to be a thoughtful mentor and he provided much needed guidance and support in establishing the concept of development in athletics, following the national lead set by the AAAs. I was fortunate to spend a considerable amount of time with Alan at Northern and National committee meetings, at his office and home in Bolton and travelling to and from Birmingham (I still use the traffic avoiding routes around the East Lancs Road and M62 that he showed me).
Alan’s contributions, using his common-sense approach and managerial background, were appreciated by all involved in the transfer of governance from the former bodies to the British Athletics Federation in 1991 / 1992. He continued his support for Northern Athletics after his retirement from his roles in the sport and he is remembered for his commitment to athletics development in the North.
John Temperton
Thank you Nick Hume for the obituary.
