Kelly Holmes wins WSFF title of favorite British sportswoman

WSFF celebrates 25 Years in Women’s Sport

Sportworks was delighted to be invited to the 25th Birthday party of the Women’s Sport and Fitness Foundation (WSFF).  At the event, Dame Kelly Holmes was there to be named Britain’s favourite sportswoman followed by Paula Radcliffe and fellow Olympic gold medallist Sally Gunnell. That’s according to research by the WSFF to mark its silver anniversary.  The evening also marked the launch of its new report which tracks a quarter century of records from women’s sport and the hurdles which still need to be tackled.

Going back to its start line in 1984, Celebrating Silver, Going for Gold reveals a strong line-up of milestones from WSFF’s history and women’s sport. Amongst them are women being able to compete in an Olympic marathon for the first time in 1984, equal pay awarded to men and women at Wimbledon from 2007 and more recently, some of women’s England cricket and football international players receiving central contracts – allowing them to play as paid professionals for the first time.

Successes from the track and field are also celebrated in the report but in terms of what the nation feels is the most iconic moment from women’s sport, frozen in time is the memory of Torvill and Dean’s ‘Bolero’ from 1984. Hot on its heels is Kelly’s double gold and Ellen MacArthur’s record breaking solo circumnavigation of the globe.

Dame Kelly Holmes, double Olympic gold medallist commented: "The last 25 years has seen British women really propel themselves to the forefront of sport. Some real sporting heroes and unforgettable moments have taken place which is why I'm so proud to even feature.  Over the last couple of years sportswomen have had huge success, especially with British women winning the majority of medals at the start of the Beijing Games. The papers were full of female medallists, providing strong role models for young women which is what sport is all about."

Sue Tibballs, Chief Executive of WSFF said: “There’s so much to cheer about from the last 25 years of women’s sport, both on and off the field. It was the same year that Torvill and Dean produced perfect scores at the Winter Olympics that WSFF was born, and it’s been great looking back at all the strides that have since been taken.  Although this year we are celebrating silver with our 25th birthday, WSFF continues to work towards a gold standard for women’s sport - there’s still some way to go. We want to see more money being invested, more women playing senior roles and more media coverage.”

For further information see http://www.wsff.org.uk/