‘It's always lovely to be invited back': Lady Mary Peters returns to former primary school as it celebrates 50 years

Belfast Telegraph

20-05-2025

The memories from when Olympic gold medallist Mary Peters attended the then new school's first sports day were yesterday passed on to the current pupils, as the Ravenhill Road school celebrated the end of its 50th year yesterday.
Lady Mary returned to the school, half a century later, still inspiring the young generation a lifetime on from her Munich success in 1972 through her Mary Peters Trust, which is also celebrating 50 years this year.
'I remember that day like it was yesterday,' said Michelle.
'And I could still tell you the exact spot where that photograph was taken.
'I don't look happy in it,' she admitted.
'Lady Mary had presented me with a silver medal for the high jump. I'd wanted the gold!
'I had spent primary one and two in what we call the old building. We had outside toilets. Then when we moved to St Michael's we had goats. I used to love going out to feed them.
'But that first year at St Michael's, the one big memory from that is the very special sports day. I can still remember the excitement when we knew that Lady Mary Peters was coming.'
The excitement was there again yesterday morning as Lady Mary made her return to meet a new generation at the school, with her well-travelled gold medal proving a star attraction for the pupils.
'It's always lovely to be invited back,' said Lady Mary.
'I'll never get tired to seeing the enthusiasm of young people. And it's lovely to meet up with Michelle again.
'If I can only inspire one child to go on and do something special then it's all worth it.'
She said she was delighted to have helped inspire hundreds of young sports stars through the work of her Mary Peters Trust over half a century.
Last year, four Olympic golds, two silvers and two bronze medals — the highest number per head of population in the world — came to Northern Ireland from athletes supported by the Trust.
'So many of the young people we have been able to help have gone on to greater things and it has been wonderful to be a part of that,' she said.
'I still get really inspired by seeing that the teachers at St Michael's are really encouraging the children to get involved in sport. Some people think sport and academia don't go well together, but you can succeed at both.'
And Lady Mary had an extra piece of advice for her new young fans at St Michel's: always do what your teachers tell you.
She continued: 'When I was at primary school I played cricket. Not very well. Ball games weren't my talent.
'But my headmaster spotted something. I remember him coming over to tell me to get through the hole in the hedge and go and do athletics training with the boys.
'In my days, the girls and boys never really mixed in sport, but I did what I was told, went through that gap in the hedge, and I loved it. It set me on my path.
'Girls didn't do a lot of sport in those days, so I was very fortunate that I had a very forward-looking headmaster who saw that girls could succeed.
'These days, if you win an Olympic gold medal, you're basically a millionaire overnight, but in my day I wasn't allowed to receive any money through sport.
'Young people needed help to get started and that's why the Mary Peters Trust was set up. But what my success did allow me to do was to join various committees and boards that were able to help at a time when they were very few women involved where decisions were being made.
'People listened to me because I had been successful. I still have that determination every day to do something special, like coming to St Michael's and meeting all the young people who are the future of this country — young people who can make it better if they are allowed to have great ambitions and those ambitions are encouraged.'
As for Michelle, she treasures her memory of meeting Lady Mary all those years ago. She still keeps her silver medal in a box and has now made new memories 50 years later.
'You always remember your primary school days,' she said.
'And I would encourage all the kids now at St Michael's to enjoy every day they have here. It's a wonderful school to be able to come back to all these years later.'