TRIBUTES	Updated 31 January 2008

MIKE VARAH (1944 - 2007)

Mike Varah who died from pneumonia on April 2, aged 62, was not only a top class middle-distance runner more than four decades ago but also gained a reputation as an outstanding officer in the probation service serving for many years as chief probation officer in Surrey before stepping down early in April 2004.
He took up athletics when at Spencer Park School, Wandsworth, in 1961 when he found "I could run a bit faster than those at school with me and consequently I began training to improve and see exactly how far I could go."
He came under the coaching regime of RFR "Killer" Clarke, a master at Wandsworth School and an outstanding athletics coach with Hercules Athletic Club, particularly with pole vaulters. (At one time his pole vaulting squad under the old tilly lights at Tooting Bec included all of Britain's top pole vaulters).
While a PE student at Loughborough College , Varah was coached by Olympic 400m runner Robbie Brightwell but, after graduating from the college he once again came under Clarke's supervision.
He progressed from a modest 880 yards club runner to a notable international and his best times were 1961: 2:20.0; 1962: 2:08.2; 1963: 1:59.9; 1964: 1:55.5; 1965: 1:51.2; 1966: 1:48.5; 1967: 1:48.2. This was achieved when he finished fourth in the AAA Championships at London's White City and lifted him to ninth place on the then UK all-time list. He was at one time holder of the UK all-comers indoor 880 yards best with 1:51.4.
He also had a best 440 yards time of 49.2 (48.3 relay leg). He also had a best 1500m time of 3:49.1.
He was Surrey 880 yards champion in 1966 (1:49.6). He ran the second leg in 1:48.9 for the British team that broke the world record for 4 x 880y with 7:14.6 at Crystal Palace, London on 22 June 1966 but the record was disallowed because a false time was called out to one of the other team members. The other team members were Graeme Grant (1:49.5), Chris Carter (1:48.0) and John Boulter (1:48.2). Carter, a retired police officer, is current secretary of the South of England Athletic Association.
Varah ran in four internationals for Great Britain in 1966 and 1967 and was fourth in his heat at the 1966 Commonwealth Games in Jamaica.
He won the UAU 800 yards title at Loughborough in 1967 and the following year the South of England 880 yards title at Motspur Park.
He continued to run for the merged Hercules Wimbledon AC until he retired at the end of the 1969 season.
Hercules Wimbledon's former Surrey cross country champion Bob Holt, like Fred Green, Mike Fuller and Mike Kortenray, a contemporary of Varah's, recalled: "I have two distinct memories of Mike. One was at a training evening at Nobby Clarke's Winter Monday night circuit training at Wandsworth School. The session often ended with some sort of speed or hill work out on the roads near the school and on this particular occasion Mike had no training shoes with him, only a pair of spikes. (He had done the circuit training in either bare or stockinged feet). He therefore donned a pair of thick socks over his spikes and ran on thus attired. I don't think it did his calves much good !
"My other memory was of an episode when he and I (plus my brother Dave) were at a training camp for British "Olympic Possibles" in May 1968 at the high altitude venue at Font Romeu in the French Pyrenees. An impromptu volleyball match took place one afternoon at the indooor arena between a team of British athletes and a French athletes' team. During the match, some of the British "supporters" (primarily the college members amongst us) struck up a rendering of a very rude version of the "Marseillaise" and one of the ring leaders in this jollity was Mike Varah. The French team responded at the end by doing a collective "moonie"."
George Peter Michael Varah, who was born on October 19 1944, coincidentally like Bob Holt he was one of triplets, was the son of Chad Varah, the founder of the Samaritans and co-founder of the Eagle comic, who is still alive aged 95. Chad was an Oxford cross blue.
Mike taught at Rugby School for five years before joining the probation service. He was Chief Probation Officer for Surrey from 1988 to 2004 when he took early retirement apparently disillusioned with the restructuring of the service and its lack of resources. His decision to retire early resulted in a question being asked by South West Surrey MP Virginia Bottomley in the House of Commons who wanted the Home Secretary to look into the reasons for his early departure. She pointed out that under his leadership Surrey ranked third out of the 42 probation services in the UK. A notice in the April edition of the National Probation Service Bulletin described him as "a pioneer of the service."
Varah continued to serve the community by joining Surrey Crimestoppers and was its chairman at the time of his death. He was also Deputy Lieutenant of Surrey and High Sheriff in Nomination.

Tom Pollak & David Cocksedge