A COMMEMORATIVE plaque has been unveiled at Thornton Sports Centre in memory of Robert Wright -- the founder of the centre's "Freespirit" School of Taekwondo.

Robert was introduced to Taekwondo in 1980 and, at the age of 15, opened his own club in a small boxing gym in Thornton with only four students.

Within a few months his clientele had dramatically increased and he relocated to Thornton Sports Centre. He sadly died in April this year after a very brave battle against cancer.

Family, friends and members of the Taekwondo School all attended the ceremony, where his wife Claire and baby daughter Jasmine presented The Trinity Hospice and the Oncology Unit at Blackpool's Victoria Hospital with a cheque for £1,250 each -- courtesy of the Robert Wright Fund.