THE late Ian Wooldridge was probably Britain's best known sports writer.

A prolific talent who won many awards during his illustrious writing career, Wooldridge continued to write his much loved columns until the week before he died from cancer.

He left Brockenhurst Grammar School in the New Forest with just two O-levels and worked on the New Milton Advertiser and Bournemouth Times before making his name on Fleet Street.

Talking about his career while collecting one of his many awards, Wooldridge once said: "I started, aged 16, on the New Milton Advertiser with two O-levels in English and art.

" It has gone in a flash. At the Mail I was a dogsbody for quite a while, then cricket correspondent for eight years and then I took over the column. It's just been such an enjoyable life."

It was as a cricket correspondent that he first made his mark but he went on to cover every major sporting event for the Daily Mail including ten Olympic Games.

Wooldridge's enthusiasm and lightness of touch gained him a worldwide following and a string of awards, testament to both Wooldridge's ability and his popularity.

He was twice newspaper columnist of the year, and after winning the Sports Writer of the Year jointly with Hugh McIlvanney in 1976, the first year it was presented, he went on to win the accolade another four times and he was four times the sports feature writer of the year.

He also won awards for his lifetime contribution to sports journalism and was received an OBE for his services to journalism.

His contribution to journalism was recognised by the London Press Club at Claridge's, when he was presented with the Edgar Wallace Award for fine writing, one of British journalism's most prestigious prizes, which has previously been won by the likes of Keith Waterhouse, Simon Jenkins and Martin Bell.

Name: Ian Wooldridge Occupation: Journalist DATE OF BIRTH: January 14, 1932 DIED: March 4, 2007 Local Link: Hampshire born, he started his career on the New Milton Advertiser