‘I’ll be honest, it did bring a tear to my eye – we’ve had an absolutely great first year’
East Park Primary School has had a spectacular sporting season(Image: East Park Primary School)
Super sporty children at a new Hull school are celebrating after a record breaking year which has seen them triumph in an astonishing 18 tournaments. East Park Primary School has only just completed its first ever year, having been created through the merger of Gillshill Primary School and Cavendish Primary School.
And the youngsters will soon be needing a new trophy room, let alone cabinet, after scooping scores of sporting medals and trophies to make its inaugural year one to remember. The school first claimed victory in the Hull and Humber Quad Kids Athletics Championships before going on to represent Hull Schools at the Humber Finals.
There, East Park achieved something that has never been accomplished in the history of the competition – winning all three age-group titles: Years 1/2, Years 3/4 and Years 5/6. It marks “triple the first time any school has achieved a clean sweep across every age category.
Meanwhile, the Year 6 boys were crowned champions of the Humber Schools 7-a-side Football Tournament, adding another prestigious title to the collection. Other wins have come in indoor athletics and cross country running.
Across the 2025/26 academic year, East Park Primary has won no less than 18 sporting tournaments, highlighting the talent, determination and teamwork of its pupils. The school has also completed the academic year with a 100% winning record in competitive school sport.
School staff say much of the success is down to inspirational PE teacher Dave Start, whose passion and dedication to school sport has transformed opportunities for hundreds of children. He was recently recognised with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Hull Active Schools Awards, recognising more than 20 years of commitment to inspiring young people through sport.
Dave, secretary of Reckitts FC which he also used to run, said the astounding sporting year proves that hard work, teamwork and excellent coaching can produce amazing results – and that the children involved should be celebrated for their achievements.
He said: “I don’t think I inspire the children – I just push them to be the best that they can. I’ve always played sport myself all my life. And I ran a successful football team, Reckitts FC, for many years. Since I stopped running the first team, this is now my passion, to make the children the best that they can possibly be in sport.
“Gilshill was always really successful but Cavendish didn’t really do a lot of sport as such. So this year, it’s been a breath of fresh air for their children, because they’ve gone to more tournaments than they’ve ever been to in their life.
“At the Quad Kids Athletics Championships there were whole schools turning up in spikes, club runners basically. And we sat there and we just thought, we’re out of our depth, really. One lad was the third fastest in England. Then they announced the years 3 and 4 had won, then the years 5 and 6, and the 1 and 2s.
“I’ll be honest, it did bring a tear to my eye, because we’ve never, ever, had one team in all of the years that’s won it. This season, this year, we’ve won every athletics competition. We’ve had an absolutely great first year.”
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