From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Martin Offiah MBE (born 29th December 1966 in London, England) is an English rugby league player. He is also known as 'Chariots' Offiah after the film 'Chariots of Fire', although (contrary to widespread popular belief) the correct pronunciation of his surname is 'Offier' – with the stress on the first syllable.

A Londoner, he first played rugby union for Rosslyn Park, before moving to rugby league to join Widnes in the late eighties. It was at Widnes were he forged his reputation as a devastating winger scorching in for 181 tries in 145 games. Alex Murphy had been interested in acquiring Offiah from rugby union, but the board of directors at St. Helens infamously referred to Offiah as an ‘unco-ordinated clown’ and the interest was not followed up with action.

Offiah joined Wigan in January 1991 for a fee of £440,000. This figure remains a record for a total cash transfer. Playing on the wing, he formed a partnership with Gene Miles in his first season at Wigan. Martin became a real showman and character of the game, often infuriating opponents when he raced past them waving goodbye.

He had great hands and an eye for a try, often making interceptions then racing the length of the field to score. Martin received criticism over his defensive game, but such was the dominance of the Wigan during this period, that he was rarely required to defend.

He played in Wigan's World Club Challenge win over the Brisbane Broncos in 1994, four Challenge Cup wins, five Championship teams, three Regal Trophy wins and one Lancashire Cup victory.

Offiah made a total of 158 appearances for Wigan with another single appearance as a substitute. He notched up more than a try a game, crossing the line 186 times. Within this total is the record 10 tries he scored in a single match against Leeds in 1992. He also managed a goal and 3 drop goals thus bagging a grand total of 749 points for the club.

In 1995 Martin Offiah's life story, a 30 minute documentary was produced and directed by Pogus Caesar for Carlton TV UK as part of the Respect (TV series).

When the game made the switch to summer rugby in 1996, Martin played in only ten games before moving to the London Broncos. He was awarded an MBE in 1997 and also played for London in their 1999 Challenge Cup final defeat to Leeds.

In 2003 Offiah was one of the celebrities taking part in the first series of the BBC's successful show Strictly Come Dancing, reaching fourth place with his partner Erin Boag. In 2005 alongside Natasha Kaplinsky, he hosted the one-off special, Strictly African Dancing.

Martin attended the 2006 Rugby League Powergen Challenge Cup Final between St. Helens and Huddersfield at Twickenham as special guest of the Rugby Football League (RFL).

• Martin Offiah - featured on 100 Great Black Britons