Last summer, North Shields lost someone who was an inspiration through his commitment to fitness and general love of life – Sydney Ahomet. Known all over Shields, Syd is still a huge miss to the town and hundreds turned out to wish him a fond farewell at his funeral last August. Syd’s name is included on Marcus Reed’s mural ‘Glory’ on the side of the Salt Market Social building, there is a plaque in his honour in the Catholic Club and he has even had a gym named after him.
We caught up with Syd’s widow, Lisa Ahomet, who recently held an open-house memorial party on 21st December, the day before what would have been his 70th birthday: ‘Everybody was so kind at the time of the funeral and some of his friends couldn’t make it, so I thought we should get together to mark the occasion. If he had been here he would have been celebrating!’ Lisa thought only a handful of people would turn up. Within a short time the whole bottom floor of her house was packed full and stayed that way for the whole evening, even with people coming and going. Syd was extremely popular and had a positive influence on everyone he met. Lisa said he was recognised everywhere they went, both at home and abroad: ‘He was a bit of a celebrity!’
Syd grew up in North Shields and started boxing at the Boys’ Club from a young age. He became hooked on keeping fit, exploring various martial arts including Karate, Aikido and Judo. At the YMCA he met Steve Black, a fitness coach who became famous for achieving success with Newcastle United Football Club, Newcastle Falcons Rugby Club and the British & Irish Lions and Welsh international rugby teams. Steve took Syd along to training sessions on the beach and gave him the opportunity to teach some top-class sports professionals. Syd became a martial arts coach and many people he trained with went on to become champions. He also worked with the youth offending team and was such a positive influence through his discipline and dedication: ‘The gym was his church’, Lisa reminisces.
Alongside training, Syd had a great work ethic. He worked at Smith’s Dock as a caulker burner, at Isowall as a forklift operator and then as a scaffolder: ‘He treated that as an all-day training session!’ Lisa jokes. He was a doorman at numerous local nightspots in the 80s and 90s: ‘He used to go from Bertie’s in Tynemouth straight to Weavers in Nile Street.’ He also worked at Marlows (above Oddfellows, now the Seven Stars). It was during this time that Lisa got to know him: ‘I said no to him for a year. Then eventually I said yes! He was such a good looking lad.’ Working on the doors motivated Syd to become fitter than ever, and he kept up his martial arts training, achieving the Second Dan black belt in Karate. He was highly respected and made many lifelong friends through his work. Lisa maintains that nobody ever had a bad word to say about him. Syd went on to work as a security guard for Newcastle University for 14 years before taking early retirement, which he embraced to the full: ‘There was no holding him back! He took up clay pigeon shooting and went to the gym every day.’
Lisa and Syd enjoyed training and keeping fit together. They also loved to travel. They made many trips to Cuba over the years, where Syd made friends with the locals and took practical gifts for families who had very little. He often enjoyed a Cuban cigar together with a brandy and a coffee, but even on holiday he always remained active, swimming and snorkelling every day. On a trip to China Syd challenged himself to run the Great Wall and he loved travelling to Las Vegas for Jiu Jitsu training. Whilst there, Syd attended an event at a hotel featuring his hero, Mike Tyson. When asked if anyone had any questions, Syd put up his hand and said, ’Mike, I’m from Shields…’ He treasured the pictures they had taken together, bearing more than a passive resemblance to each other! Even lockdown did not curb Syd’s commitment to boxing. He was entrusted with the keys to the gym owned by his friend, Jabs: ‘He knew Syd would look after it’, Lisa states proudly. The couple went there every day to box and do circuit and weight training.
Then in 2022, Lisa noticed that Syd had started losing his washboard stomach: ‘It had always been rock-solid’, she remembers. On Christmas Day of that year, Syd suddenly became unwell after eating his dinner and was rushed into hospital. He was diagnosed with bowel cancer and underwent emergency surgery on Boxing Day to remove a large growth: ‘His stomach had actually split in two’, explains Lisa. Much to the disbelief of his doctors, Syd was out of bed after a couple of days doing squats and press-ups against the wall, and by New Year’s Eve he was back home: ‘They were astounded at how resilient he was, because he was so fit.’ After undergoing various chemotherapy treatments, Syd started to recover: ‘He looked amazing!’ Lisa recalls. Syd got back to the gym and continued to go throughout his treatment. His determination and commitment to maintaining his fitness allowed him to enjoy the remainder of his life to the fullest, maintaining physical and mental strength and a positive attitude throughout: ‘He kept up the clay pigeon shooting, too, right up until the point he wasn’t strong enough to hold the rifle any more.’
Syd passed away on 2nd August 2025 at home with Lisa by his side. Tragically, Lisa also lost her mam, Grace, on the very same day just an hour before. Incredibly, Lisa decided to hold both funerals on the same day, Tuesday 26th August 2025. After a beautiful ceremony and gathering at Tynemouth Golf Club for her mam in the morning, Lisa then had to get through the major event that turned out to be Syd’s funeral in the afternoon: ‘The funeral staff said they had never known so many turn up to the crematorium before. They had to part the crowds to get the cars through.’ Extra staff were specially employed to cope with the overwhelming amount of attendees afterwards at the Catholic Club, where Syd used to drink with family and friends. His favourite spot by the bar is now marked by a commemorative plaque on the wall.
Through these incredibly tough past few months, Lisa has had to draw inspiration from Syd’s strength and positivity, continuing to care for other family members and maintaining regular contact with her husband’s large circle of friends to keep his memory alive. Syd’s far-reaching and lasting influence is evidenced by the love for him that Lisa stills feels all around her in the North Shields community and beyond, and his legacy will live on in all those he inspired throughout his remarkable life.
