SCHOOLS MEMORY CHAMPION

HANNAH WARD (14) of Roade School Sports College, Roade, Northampton has just been crowned the first UK Schools Memory Champion
The competition is the brainchild of eight times World Memory Champion Dominic O’Brien, Chief Arbiter of the World Memory Sports Council Phil Chambers and Tony Buzan, co-founder of the World Memory Championship, best selling international author and lecturer on the Brain and its workings – all renowned figures in the world of Mind Sports.
It’s been a tense and nail-biting time for over 300 secondary school students as they waited for the judges to announce the overall winners of the very first Schools Memory Championship, with the Awards ceremony for the winners held at The Park Inn Hotel, Northampton, on Monday 9th June.
Joining Gold Medal winner Hannah Ward on the podium, were Silver Medallist DAVID LUCK (14) from Huxlow Science College, Wellingborough and Bronze winner ELLEN BILTCLIFFE (14) from Magdalen College School, Brackley. The competition is sponsored by Aimhigher, a national government initiative to encourage students into higher education. The Aimhigher programme is run by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), with support from the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS). Inspire, the Ascot-based educational and training consultancy, has been co-ordinating the event.
“The UK Schools Memory Championship has been created to help pupils discover the Mind Sport of Memory and to develop their mental skills to aid them with their studies,” explains competition co-founder Dominic O’Brien. “The five Memory disciplines have been chosen to closely correspond with those of the World Memory Championship, whilst being easily transferable to school subjects. “With exam success dependent on making good use of one’s memory, mastering memorisation techniques early on is a great platform for success” adds Dominic.