You won't find better examples of British female athletes than these 1980s icons. You'll find articles on Olympic gold medalist Hannah Mills, BMX champion Laura Kenny, and Great Britain's first transgender athlete. You'll also find information on women's tennis, judo, and swimming.
Beth Shriever, BMX gold Medalist
Beth Shriever is a British BMX gold Medalist. The BMX rider won Tokyo's women’s race gold. Her success was a long time coming and was not easy. She began on a borrowed bicycle and a secondhand bike. Eventually, she became a household name in Britain.
In the semi-finals, Shriever won all three of her races and almost led from the start. In the final, she held off a late charge from Colombia's Mariana Pajon to take gold. Whyte also received a silver award in the BMX riding event. Both Shriever and Whyte hail from the UK.
BMX champion Laura Kenny
Laura Kenny, a former BMX champ, will be returning to the track at the 2020 UCI World Track Championships. After two serious crashes in velodrome, Kenny considered retiring. Her first accident occurred in February during a tempo event at the Milton World Cup. She broke her shoulder and arm in the fall, but resisted the urge to retire. She fell again the next month in a scratch racing event, and her arm was also broken. She returned home and was not able to diagnose the injury.
Kenny holds five Olympic medals, two of which are golds. She also won silver in the team pursuit. She is now one of the most decorated Olympians ever to be a British citizen. She was also the first British woman ever to win a medal at three consecutive games.
Olympic gold medalists Hannah Mills (left) and Charlotte Worthington (right)
Both of the Olympic gold medalists are from Cardiff, Wales. They both enjoy being environmentalists. Mills, who is a member Welsh national sailing crew, rose through the ranks of Great Britain to win a string o junior titles in both solo and crewed events. She went to Howell's School in Llandaff and was the first girl to win the Optimist Girls' World Championship. She was also the first British female national champion. Mills decided to abandon her third year at mechanical engineering to focus on her achievements on the water.
Mills and Worthington were still recovering from injuries sustained during the London Olympics. After a short break, the pair decided to give the Olympic cycle another go. Clark recovered from pneumonia. Joe Glanfield, their coach, was killed. The team won the gold and they were back in the water. Both were congratulated by the team and celebrated at the beach. But it wasn't all easy sailing. Mills suffered a concussion in January and stomach problems in March which required her to undergo a gastroscopy.
Great Britain's first transgender athletics
There are more events being put on to help transgender individuals in the UK. The 1980s marked several significant events for the trans community. Philippa York, an accomplished cyclist, became transgender. The International Transgender Conference was held at the University of East Anglia and is now a biennial event. Stephen Whittle and Lewis Turner published Engendered Penalties. This book aimed to include trans persons in the Commission on Equalities. Kele Telesford's murder was another notable event of the 1980s. Her body was discovered in her home. Laverne Cx was also the first transgender model to grace a British Vogue cover.
British women's sport has long criticized transgender competitors. The inclusion transgender women in women's sport has led to wide-ranging discussion about their unfair physical advantages. Many British female Olympians have also criticized the inclusion of transgender athletes. Despite the controversy and criticism, transgender athletes have continued competing in the field.