Edmund Aspinall

Edmund Aspinall devoted many years to the famous Bolton Lads gymnastics club, firstly as a competitor, up to the outbreak of World War I, and then as a coach. Although he never won a national title, he was selected for the individual all-round competition at the 1908 London Olympics and finished 56th out of 96. Two years later he made his England début in the International Championship at Leith, when called in as a late replacement for Len Hanson.

A cotton-mill worker at the time of the London Games, Aspinall became a physical training instructor after the War and took over the coaching at the Bolton Lads Club. He guided them to their first Adams Shield victory as British team champions in 1933, and helped them retain the title the following year.