Jessica's lasting Lego-cy
Olympic golden girl and University of Sheffield graduate Jessica Ennis has been encapsulated in Lego to celebrate her amazing achievements.
The nation took Jessica to their hearts on Saturday (5 August 2012) after her sensational gold-medal-winning performance in the gruelling Women's Heptathlon at the London 2012 Games.
The sporting superstar, who graduated with a degree in Psychology from the University in 2007, thrived under immense pressure scoring a British and Common wealth record score of 6,955 points.
Now unique Lego models of the pocket rocket have been created to celebrate the momentous occasion.
The custom 'minifig' Lego creations were made by Caroline Parkin-Savage, Postdoctoral Research Associate at the MRC Centre for Developmental and Biomedical Genetics (CDBG) at the University of Sheffield.
Caroline, 32, from Stannington, who owns nearly 100,000 Lego bricks said: "You don't have to be a little kid to enjoy Lego. I started making minifigs about a year ago after getting back into Lego with some encouragement from my nephew.
"Since the opening ceremony I have become obsessed with the Olympics so I decided to make some Olympic minifigs including models of Jessica Ennis, Andy Murray, Sir Chris Hoy and Greg Rutherford to celebrate the spectacular success of Team GB.
"I made special 'good luck Jessica' minifig and then pre-empted the fantastic result slightly by making one of her with the gold medal around her neck.
"Everyone is so proud of Jessica here at the University and it is truly amazing what she has achieved. It is great to know she is a former student of the place I now work."
Caroline sells many of the quirky minifig creations online including her original roller derby figures and intricate science lab scenes based on the MRC-CDBG.
In January 2010 the University of Sheffield awarded Jessica an honorary degree and she was made a Sheffield Legend after being nominated by Sheffield residents as bringing the city recognition at national and international level.
She is also patron of the University's Elite Sports Performance Scheme (ESPS), which was launched in 2009 to provide financial and non-financial support to talented student athletes at the University, who are representing England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland in one of Sport England's recognised sports.
For more information or to order your very own minifig visit Custom Minifigs or Minifigs Facebook
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Additional information:
Elite Sports Performance Scheme
ESPS
The University of Sheffield’s Department of Psychology
Department of Psychology
The University of Sheffield
With nearly 25,000 students from 125 countries, the University of Sheffield is one of the UK’s leading and largest universities. A member of the Russell Group, it has a reputation for world-class teaching and research excellence across a wide range of disciplines.
The University of Sheffield has been named University of the Year in the Times Higher Education Awards for its exceptional performance in research, teaching, access and business performance. In addition, the University has won four Queen’s Anniversary Prizes (1998, 2000, 2002, 2007). These prestigious awards recognise outstanding contributions by universities and colleges to the United Kingdom’s intellectual, economic, cultural and social life. Sheffield also boasts five Nobel Prize winners among former staff and students and many of its alumni have gone on to hold positions of great responsibility and influence around the world.
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The University has well-established partnerships with a number of universities and major corporations, both in the UK and abroad. Its partnership with Leeds and York Universities in the White Rose Consortium has a combined research power greater than that of either Oxford or Cambridge.
Contact
Amy Pullan
Media Relations Officer
The University of Sheffield
0114 222 9859
a.l.pullan@sheffield.ac.uk