A GRANDMOTHER who competed as a gymnast at the first Olympic Games after the end of the Second World War will have her ashes put into the River Aire, where she met her husband while rowing a boat.
Dorothy Webster, then Dorothy Hey, died last week aged 83 and competed as a gymnast in both the 1948 Wembley Olympics and the 1952 games in Helsinki.
And it was in the run up to Finland that she met her husband Derek on a sunny day in Roberts Park, Saltaire.
Mr Webster was a renowned local cricketer - he later took ten wickets for 34 in the Priestley Cup in 1958 - and was fielding for Salts Club when a six was hit into the river.
Mrs Webster and a girlfriend were rowing up towards the weir and retrieved the ball which Dorothy threw to the young cricketer on the bank.
"We only heard this story a few years back when we went to Salts to spread dad's ashes on the wicket and suddenly mum piped up with the story of how they met," said her eldest son John.
"Apparently as soon as the match ended, dad quickly jumped into a boat, rowed off to find the girls and asked mum out.
"So we put dad's ashes into the river and we'll do the same with mum," he said.
Born in Park Street, Saltaire, Mrs Webster and her husband both worked at Salts Mill before taking their young sons John and Alan to work on farms around the country.
They returned to live in Baildon in the 1970s and Mrs Webster's sporting nature showed itself when son John became an international speed skater, also representing his country.
"I learned to skate at Bradford ice rink and although it was before the sport was part of the Olympics I competed all over the place, including winning trophies in Australia," said Mr Webster.
His brother Alan, 56 was also a successful amateur footballer in Bradford teams.
"Mum didn't do anything sporty after retiring from gymnastics and was always quite happy to leave it with what she'd done in the Olympics - which she felt was enough," he said.
"She devoted herself to her family and both she and my dad were very keen gardeners at their home near Baildon Green." Mr Webster died ten years ago aged 79.
Mrs Webster's funeral will take place at Nab Wood Crematorium, Shipley, tomorrow at 2pm.
"And we will be putting her ashes into the river at Roberts Park where she met dad all those years ago and they can be together again," Mr Webster said.
