Mark Foster

Areas of Interest

Charity, Sports

Honorary Award

Honorary Doctor of Health Sciences, 2011

Biography

Mark Foster is among the most successful British swimmers of all time specialising in butterfly and freestyle at 50 meters.

Six times a World Champion, his trophy cabinet holds six World Championship medals, 10 European Champion medals and two Commonwealth Champion medals. He has also broken eight world records during his career.

His swimming career has spanned over 20 years making him one of the most enduring competitors the UK has ever had - with a very special talent for butterfly and freestyle at 50 meters.

In 2008 he competed in his fifth Olympic Games in Beijing and - to recognise this incredible feat - his team-mates voted that he should carry the British flag at the opening ceremony.

Mark Foster was born in Billericay in 1970 before his family moved to Southend when he was just two years old. It was in Southend that he was first taught to swim by the mother of Sarah Hardcastle and he was the fastest swimmer in the country by the age of 15. A true 'Essex boy', Mark was educated at Alleyn Court Preparatory School in Westcliffe on Sea, Millfield School and Southend High School for Boys where he excelled in athletics, football and tennis.

He was first selected for the British team in 1985 and his big breakthrough came in 1990 when he won bronze in the Commonwealth Games in Auckland. His career as an Olympic class athlete saw him win 47 international medals. He retired from competitive swimming but then made a surprise comeback at the National Championships in July 2007, winning both events he swam in with hardly any preparation. He was then picked for the Beijing Olympics, making him the oldest member of the Great Britain Olympics team.

Mark puts his sporting 'longevity' down to his sprint-style of swimming explaining that he spends as much time in the gym as he does in the pool in preparation for his incredible performances. He is a perfectionist who has always studied the science of swimming in order to remain in peak physical fitness and at the top of his game. He is described as an outstanding athlete by his peers and by the media as one of Britain's 'elite' sportsmen. Not content with being a global swimming sensation, Mark is also a strong supporter of a number of charities.

He was a contestant on the 2010 BBC programme Let's Dance for Sport Relief and in 2009 supported ActionAid's PoverTee Day by having a T-shirt painted on his torso. In 2009, he became patron of The Anaphylaxix Campaign in memory of a friend of his who died so that he could help support others suffering with severe allergies. He won £10,000 for the campaign by participating in Who Wants to be a Millionaire during the same year.

Mark was also announced as a celebrity judge for the Miele Fashion Prize, in aid of the children's medical charity Sparks. He has also worked with photographer Penny Lancaster on the British Gas Swimfit scheme which encourages people to learn to swim - an activity that saves countless lives.

As a well as being in demand as a TV personality, Strictly Come Dancing contestant, model and guest speaker, Mark is also putting his name to the Grey-Away Day scheme to promote prostate cancer awareness. It saw him dye his famous grey hair back to brown for the charity.

Citation

"Vice Chancellor, it is my pleasure to read the citation for Mark Foster for the award of Honorary Doctor of Health Sciences.

Mark Foster is among the most successful British swimmers of all time specialising in butterfly and freestyle at 50 meters.

Six times a World Champion, his trophy cabinet holds six World Championship medals, 10 European Champion medals and two Commonwealth Champion medals. He has also broken eight world records during his career.

His swimming career has spanned over 20 years making him one of the most enduring competitors the UK has ever had - with a very special talent for butterfly and freestyle at 50 meters.

In 2008 he competed in his fifth Olympic Games in Beijing and - to recognise this incredible feat - his team-mates voted that he should carry the British flag at the opening ceremony.

Mark Foster was born in Billericay in 1970 before his family moved to Southend when he was just two years old. It was in Southend that he was first taught to swim by the mother of Sarah Hardcastle and he was the fastest swimmer in the country by the age of 15. A true 'Essex boy', Mark was educated at Alleyn Court Preparatory School in Westcliffe on Sea, Millfield School and Southend High School for Boys where he excelled in athletics, football and tennis.

He was first selected for the British team in 1985 and his big breakthrough came in 1990 when he won bronze in the Commonwealth Games in Auckland. His career as an Olympic class athlete saw him win 47 international medals. He retired from competitive swimming but then made a surprise comeback at the National Championships in July 2007, winning both events he swam in with hardly any preparation. He was then picked for the Beijing Olympics, making him the oldest member of the Great Britain Olympics team.

Mark puts his sporting 'longevity' down to his sprint-style of swimming explaining that he spends as much time in the gym as he does in the pool in preparation for his incredible performances. He is a perfectionist who has always studied the science of swimming in order to remain in peak physical fitness and at the top of his game. He is described as an outstanding athlete by his peers and by the media as one of Britain's 'elite' sportsmen.

Not content with being a global swimming sensation, Mark is also a strong supporter of a number of charities.

He was a contestant on the 2010 BBC programme Let's Dance for Sport Relief and in 2009 supported ActionAid?s PoverTee Day by having a T-shirt painted on his torso. In 2009, he became patron of The Anaphylaxix Campaign in memory of a friend of his who died so that he could help support others suffering with severe allergies. He won £10,000 for the campaign by participating in Who Wants to be a Millionaire during the same year.

Mark was also announced as a celebrity judge for the Miele Fashion Prize, in aid of the children's medical charity Sparks. He has also worked with photographer Penny Lancaster on the British Gas Swimfit scheme which encourages people to learn to swim - an activity that saves countless lives.

As a well as being in demand as a TV personality, Strictly Come Dancing contestant, model and guest speaker, Mark is also putting his name to the Grey-Away Day scheme to promote prostate cancer awareness. It saw him dye his famous grey hair back to brown for the charity.

As a world-class athlete, he has unwavering motivation, dedication and self-belief that has ensured his swimming success. He is an excellent role model for aspiring sports science students and sports enthusiasts everywhere.

Vice Chancellor, it is my pleasure to present Mark Foster for the award of Doctor of Health Sciences, honoris causa."