AFTER a lifetime of sporting success, Bolton's Brian Aspen's greatest honour came when he was presented with the MBE by the Prince of Wales.

Brian, a leading member of Bolton Olympic Wrestling Club, was awarded the medal in the Queen's Birthday Honours list.

Up to then his greatest achievement was a Commonwealth Games gold in 1982 but he insists the award for his services to amateur wrestling tops all his medals.

"It's better than all of them," he said. "It's not just for me. It's for my family, the town and wrestling in general.

Wonderful day

"I couldn't believe it when I was nominated and I really can't believe it now I've got it. It was a wonderful day. I went to Buckingham Palace with my wife Janet, our two children Calum and Laura and meeting the Prince of Wales was brilliant."

Before that, however, there was another big surprise for Brian when he arrived at a London pub to meet up with former wrestler Keith Peache, who was best man at Brian and Janet's wedding.

"Unknown to me he had got in touch with about 30 other wrestlers, who I had either fought or trained with over the years, and they all came to London for what was a fantastic night out.

"My former Olympic coach Kenny Dawes was there and Mohammed Nazir, who was a great rival of mine in our wrestling days, and who I beat in 1978 to win a place in the Commonwealth Games, also came and together we all shared a lot of happy memories."

The MBE was a tribute to Brian's amateur wrestling career, which began when he was only six years of age.

He went on to win a clutch of schoolboy and under-21 titles before graduating to the senior international squad, becoming an ambassador for Bolton Olympic Wrestling Club at events all over the world.

He won the British senior championships eight times and represented England in the Commonwealth Games four times, winning bronze in 1978 and 1986 and gold at Brisbane, Australia, in 1982.

But he ranks winning silver at the 1984 European championships, where he was pitted against some of the sport's toughest competitors, as his greatest achievement.

He appeared at two Olympic Games; Moscow in 1980 and Los Angeles in 1984 and went on to coach the national squad before he retired in 1994.

His honour is of particular pride to his father Albert, who himself had an illustrious wrestling career and won three Commonwealth gold medals in 1958, 1962 and 1966.

Brian still takes an interest in the sport but is not connected with it in any official capacity. Now he keeps fit on the soccer pitch - managing Ladybridge under 15s, for whom his son Calum plays.