Glanmor Griffiths, the man who delivered the iconic Millennium Stadium for Wales, has died at the age of 83 after passing away peacefully in Cardiff.

During his time as treasurer, chairman and president of the Welsh Rugby Union he was a towering and often controversial figure who became known throughout Wales simply as ‘Glanmor’.

Wales was able to host the 1999 Rugby World Cup because to his perseverance and steely determination to complete the Millennium Stadium project on schedule and within budget. Many people believed that preparing the building for the tournament was an impossible feat, but he disproved the “Doubting Thomases” by completing it in time for the opening match between Wales and Argentina.

“Welsh rugby owes Glanmor Griffiths a huge debt for all his work on delivering what is now Principality Stadium. At the time it was one of the biggest engineering projects in western Europe and what it has delivered to the nation since 1999 has been incredible,” said WRU chairman Richard Collier-Keywood.

It has developed into Wales’ most recognizable structure throughout time and contributed about £3 billion to the Welsh economy. It cost just £130 million compared to the close to £1 billion it cost to restore Wembley Stadium, and it has been the foundation of record financial returns for the WRU in recent years.

His shrewd negotiating skills enabled Wales to host games at both the 2007 and 2015 World Cups under a reciprocity agreement, and his securing of a fixed price contract for design, build and delivery of the Millennium Stadium, complete with retractable roof, proved a masterstroke.

Adrian Ewer, the group financial chairman of John Laing plc, admitted in 1999 that the £26m losses his company incurred were down to building the stadium. “We got it wrong in the bidding,” he admitted when referring to the guaranteed maximum price negotiated by Glanmor.

In an interview with WalesOnline in 2019, during which he spoke about his 15-year battle with Parkinson’s, Glanmor said of the stadium project: “It was the most difficult, yet most fulfilling, period of my life helping to deliver it and I was thankful for the support I received from the management board we assembled.

While he was working in London, his career at the bank carried him to Paddock Wood, Tonypandy, Llandough, Bridgend, and eventually Ascot. His future wife, Mair, and he were introduced at a dance in Porthcawl. They were married in 1964 and had four kids together.

In the week before the Millennium Stadium staged its first game, a test event against South Africa on 26 June 1999, Glanmor arranged for some posts to be erected, and invited Neil Jenkins to become the first player to kick at the new home of Welsh rugby.

Feel free to drop condolences messages and prayers for the family and friends of the deceased as it will go a very long way at this difficult time of theirs.

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