Speaker Profile

A former competitive breaststroke swimmer, Nick competed in three consecutive Olympic Games winning medals at both Seoul and Barcelona. He also represented Great Britain in the World and European Championships, and England in the Commonwealth Games. Nick set a number of records during his career including three World and ten European. For thirteen years he represented Great Britain, making him one of the most consistent competitors in the sport.

The first part of 1988 saw Nick's times improve, and he arrived at the Olympic Games ranked in the top three. He went on to win a silver medal in the 200m breaststroke, turning him from a relatively unknown twenty one year old into a household name. At Barcelona, four years later, he produced a personal best time, but unfortunately it was not enough to take the title. He came away with a very commendable bronze.

Nick won seven Commonwealth Games medals in total including a gold in the 200m breaststroke, a silver in the 100m breaststroke and a bronze in the 4x100m medley in Victoria in 1994. These added to the silver and three bronzes he won at the previous two games in Edinburgh and Auckland.

Gillingham was honoured in 1993 when he was awarded the MBE for services to swimming. After retiring from competitive swimming, he set up a sports communications business concentrating on sports marketing, development & events. He also created the successful Swimzone programme. He has worked as a commentator at various swimming events.