The Fund was founded by Jean Pickering and her children Kim and Shaun following the untimely death of husband and father Ron in 1991. Ron was a former Physical Education teacher and national athletics coach, training Lynn Davies to Tokyo Olympic gold in 1964.
Ron is best remembered as the voice of athletics on BBC commentaries and iconic programmes such as Superstars and We are the Champions. He was awarded the OBE by the Queen in 1986 for services to sport. Jean herself was an Olympic medallist from the 1952 Helsinki Olympics.
The Ron Pickering Memorial Fund made its first annual grant in 1991.
Following Jean’s death in 2013, the Trustees have continued her hard work to keep the Fund going to represent both of their contribution to the Sport. The RPMF has since its inception, granted several thousand small but individually significant awards and more substantial ‘scholarship’ grants totalling well over £2million.
Awards are made annually after an application process each autumn and are available to both able and disability athletes between the ages of 15 and 23, with grants to athletes over 23 being made in exceptional circumstances.
The grants are designed to help overcome potential barriers to success, but maybe as important, as a recognition of early effort, talent and accomplishment. The range in value can depend on the athletes age, ability and personal circumstances. Funding aims to positively impact the athlete’s ability to develop, help make the difficult transition from junior to senior level through support for items such as equipment, specialist coaching or travel, and most importantly, help build the athletes’ confidence and self-esteem through this recognition.
The success of the awards has been considerable with many of today’s senior British athletes being helped along the way by the RPMF. Typically, around 70% of current members of GB International Teams at European and World Junior and Senior teams and at Olympic Games have received a grant from RPMF at some point in their development.
We’re especially proud of our record of supporting future Olympians – most of the the individual medallists at the 2024 Olympic Games had at some stage been in receipt of funding from RPMF (see overleaf re TeamGB Olympic team and medallists).
Please help us to continue supporting the next generation of British athletic talent.
Our primary source of income for the RPMF is through money raised by participants in the London Marathon and other events, running for our charity. This provides us with the funds to consistently award the Grants every year.
Indeed, the success of our ‘Ronners’ fundraising efforts specifically at the London Marathon has been directly reflected in the increasing number of young athletes we have been able to support each year – every penny raised is given out in our awards each year.
2025 World Championships
f saying you’re going to do something until you can’t believe anything else is something you question, then let Amy Hunt’s success at worlds convince you otherwise. Known for her confidence and self belief, Amy surprised everyone (but herself and her coach) when she pulled into medal contention after the bend in the 200m final. As she chased down the American she knew she was going home with her first international medal, but it wasn’t until she looked up to see the screen that it hit her, everything she had said, had become a reality in 22.14s.
In a 1500m final that played out far from how anyone expected, Jake Wightman was pipped on the line by the Portuguese in a rather dramatic finish by solely two-hundredths of a second. Despite Jake leading the final lap and looking strong in the final 30-metres, Nader came out of nowhere to take the gold. But that’s what it’s all about, hey?
Another dramatic final was the women’s 800m where we were treated to a race with a rather unexpected finish. Whilst Kenya’s Odira took he win, it was a battle between GB’s Keely Hodgkinson and Georgia Hunter-Bell for silver and bronze. After some moments, it was revealed that Georgia Hunter-Bell had beaten her training partner and reigning Olympic Champion by one one-hundredth of a second.
Over in the heptathlon, GB had three athletes competing; KJT, Abi Pawlett and Jade O’Dowda, all RPMF athletes too! An emotional KJT finished joint-third whilst Jade finished a very impressive and promising 8th. Abi Pawlett, finally broke her 6-year-old high jump PB, not just once but twice to clear 1.80m. However, the earlier nasty fall in the hurdles gave her concussion and she was advised to not finish day 2. Nonetheless, her first world championships were an incredible experience for her and said she is looking to come back even stronger next season.
Morgan Lake finished 8th in the high jump final whilst Max Burgin finished 6th in 800m final, both performances to be very proud of. Amber Anning, finished 5th in the 400m, a ridiculously fast race that saw Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone rise to second on the all time list, the fastest in 40-years. Finally, Scott Lincoln, our shot putt hero, finished 8th which was the highest finish ever by a British shot putter in a major international.
