Becky Downie
Becky Downie is from my hometown of Nottingham UK and she once presented my children with medals for ‘sporting enthusiasm’ back at my old school. I was so thrilled that they got to meet such a young and fabulous sporting icon.
Becky Downie is now 29 and I met her first when she was just 18, she was full of smiles and motivation for young athletes and a tremendous role model. Becky competed in gymnastics at the 2008 and 2016 Summer Olympics.
She also has these amazing achievements to her credit.
- European champion (2014 and 2016)
- 2014 Commonwealth Games champion on the uneven bars
- 2019 World silver medalist
Impressive!
Becky really does keep it in the family too with her younger sister Ellie also an Olympic gymnast.
Tani Grey-Thompson
Tani is a member of the House of Lords here in the UK having been given a life peerage due to her services for disabled people and sport. She is an extremely impressive lady.
Born in Wales in 1969 Tani Grey-Thompson was born with spina bifida and is a wheelchair user. She is one of the most celebrated disabled athletes in the UK and has a host of medals that prove her prowess.
During the course of her stellar Paralympic career she won:
- 16 medals (11 gold, four silver and a bronze)
- 13 World Championship medals (six gold, five silver and two bronze).
How amazing is that tally!?
Tani mainly competed in wheelchair racing but has also competed in wheelchair basketball in her day. She is patron for dozens of charities promoting leadership and sport and she also regularly reports on TV.
Her autobiography “Seize the Day” came out in 2001.
Ellie Simmonds
Ellie Simmonds is a huge Paralympic swimming star in the UK – at the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing, she won two gold medals for Great Britain – an outstanding performance especially considering that at the age of 13! How awesome is that.
She has also won: ten gold World Championship titles – wow!
Ellie has achondroplasia, a form of dwarfism and is patron of the Dwarf Sports Association UK . Ellie has done so much for charity she was honored by Queen Elizabeth with an OBE (order of the British Empire) she was the youngest person ever to receive one.
Meeting athletes in real life situations is truly a great motivation to get get yourself in shape and to keep fit. If you’re struggling for motivation this guide to finding inspiration to work out could be a useful read.
So there you have it – 3 truly inspirational sporting women and how awesome they are. Who would you have chosen as your favorites?