Olympian and civil servant elected Honorary Fellows of Trinity Hall
Posted:
09 Sep 2025
Engineer and elite athlete Dr Emma Pooley and former Permanent Secretary to the Treasury Sir Tom Scholar GCB, both Trinity Hall alumni, have been chosen to join a remarkable group of individuals as Trinity Hall’s newest Honorary Fellows.
Dr Emma Pooley
Emma Pooley is an engineer, author and former professional athlete. After taking up road cycling while studying Engineering at Trinity Hall, she raced to a silver medal at the Beijing Olympics just a few years later. She became time-trial world champion in 2010, represented Great Britain at a further two Olympic Games, and went on to win the world championship in duathlon four times.
She campaigned for better recognition of women’s cycling and was an outspoken proponent of the modern women’s Tour de France.
Emma wrote her doctoral thesis at ETH Zürich on the remediation of mining waste and works as a geotechnical engineer, specialising in natural hazards and contaminated land improvement.
Emma said: “I feel unduly honoured to be invited to join such outstanding Honorary Fellows at Trinity Hall. It was here that I began both engineering and cycling, leading to opportunities that I could not have dreamed of and for which I continue to be grateful to Trinity Hall.”
Sir Tom Scholar ©2024 Ernie Savarese Photographer
Tom Scholar is the chair of Nomura International plc and chair designate of Santander UK plc. He was previously Permanent Secretary to the Treasury (2016-22), leading the Treasury through a time of great policy innovation during the Covid pandemic.
In his earlier civil service career, he made significant international contributions as the Prime Minister’s Adviser on European and Global Issues, and roles at the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the British Embassy in Washington DC.
Tom studied History at Trinity Hall and was appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB) in the 2023 New Year Honours.
Speaking about his Honorary Fellowship, Tom said: “This is a tremendous honour, and a great privilege, and I am most grateful to Trinity Hall.”
Congratulating the duo, Mary Hockaday, Master of Trinity Hall, said: “We are delighted to welcome Emma and Tom as Honorary Fellows. Their exceptional achievements are very varied, and we take great pride that they have put their talents and their Trinity Hall experience to wonderful use in the service of the public and the wider world through government, sport and education.”
Dr Emma Pooley and Sir Tom Scholar will be formally admitted to their Honorary Fellowships during a ceremony at Trinity Hall in October.