At a ceremony which took place at the European Open Championships, in Montecatini, Italy, Nicola Smith and John Holland were inducted in the EBL Hall of Fame.
Nicola has played in the European Championships 24 times for Great Britain and England's Women's Team, winning a gold medal on eight occasions. She has also won numerous other medals, including gold in the Venice Cup twice. She was awarded an MBE in 1995 for her contribution to bridge.
John has played in the last six European Championships, the most recent four appearances in the Senior's event in which he won a gold medal in 2014. He also won the D'Orsi Bowl - the 'Senior World Championships' - in 2009.
The Hall of Fame was established to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the formation EBL, and the other inaugural inductees were:
Open - Paul Chemla (France), Benito Garozzo (Italy), Geir Helgemo (Norway/Monaco), Julian Klukowski (Poland)
Women - Bep Vriend (Netherlands), Sylvie Willard (France)
Senior - Apolinary Kowalski (Poland)
- Photo gallery from the event (above photos from the EBL)
- Video from the event (via the EBL on Youtube)
June 28, 2017