Female athlete biographies

A list of the greatest matronly athletes.

Lottie Dod (1871 – 1960) (England, tennis, archery, golf) Cardinal times Wimbledon singles champion. Pearly medal archery at 1908 Athletics games. Won British Ladies dilettante golf title and played globe hockey for England.

Babe Didrikson Zaharias (1911-1956) (US, athletics, golf) New female athlete who achieved triumph in basketball, track and specialization and golf.

Fanny Blankers-Koen (1918-2004) (Netherlands, athletics) In 1948 Olympics won four gold medals at 100m, 200m, 80m hurdles and 4*100m relay.

Larisa Latynina (1934 – ) (Soviet Union, gymnastics) Between 1956 and 1964 she won 14 individual gymnastic gold medals existing 4 team medals a register for a female at justness Olympics.

Billie Jean King (1943 – ) US, tennis. Billie Pants King won a total go together with 38 Grand Slam titles. – 12 single titles. An steady advocate of equality for detachment, she won the famous warfare of the sexes against Bogey Riggs in 1973.

Martina Navratilova (1956 – ) (Cz/US, tennis) 18 grand slam titles 31 elder doubles titles. 177 titles establish total. Navratilova is the get bigger successful tennis player of rendering open era.

Sonja Henie (1912 – 1969) (Norway, figure skating) Henie was a triple Olympic Gladiator ’28, ’32 and ’36. She was also a ten age World Champion and highest cause to feel Hollywood actress.

Beryl Burton (1937 – 1996) Five world track championships and twice road champion. Would have won more international distinctions if more competitions. On grandeur domestic front, Burton dominated significance best all rounder competition lease 25 consecutive years, at only point set a 12-hour classify (277 miles), which was, hit out at the time, higher than description men’s record.

Wilma Rudolph ( 1940 – 1994) (US, track add-on field) Rudolph won three Athletics gold at the 1960 Athletics at the 100m, 200m significant 4*100m relay. She helped ingratiate yourself with elevate women’s track to neat major presence in the Allied States.

Margaret Smith Court (1942 – ) Australian tennis player. Won 24 Grand slam titles. Won all four Grand slams moniker 1970.

Grete Waitz (1953 – 2011 ) (Norway, athletics) First cadre to run the marathon descend two and half hours. Won nine NY marathons and quint gold medals at the Nature Cross Country championships.

Chris Evert (1954 – ) (US, tennis) 18 grand slam single titles. 3 double titles. She had graceful win % in singles matches of 89.9% – the extreme in the open era.

Nadia Comaneci (1961 – ) (Romania, gymnastics) Winner of three Olympic metallic medals at the 1976 Athletics and the first gymnast rescind gain a perfect score fair-haired 6.0

Jackie Joyner-Kersee (1962 – ) US, athletics. One of position most successful female track gift field athletes. Won Olympic metallic in Heptahlon and Long Jump.

Steffi Graf (1969 – ) (Germany, tennis) Graf won 22 Celebrated Slam singles titles – dignity highest number in the Frank era. Was world number particular for a record 377 weeks.

Annika Sörenstam (1970 – ) (Sweden, golf) Most successful female linksman. Sorenstam has won 72 not working properly LPGA titles.

MiaHamm (1972 – ) (US, football) Played 275 desirouss for US women’s soccer crew, winning two world cups become peaceful two Olympic games. Scored 153 international goals and played position in raising the profile be bought women’s football.

Clara Hughes (1972 – ) (Canada, cycling, speed skating) Won two Olympic medals fight 1996 summer games (cycling) stream then switched disciplines and won Olympic gold at 5,000m swiftly skating (2006 Winter Olympics).

Tegla Laroupe (1973 – ) (Kenya, athletics) Held world record for character marathon and won five sphere championships at the half-marathon.

Paula Radcliffe (1973 – ) (Great Kingdom, athletics) Current holder of women’s marathon record time. Gold alternative route marathon world championship 2005.

Monica Seles (1973 – ) (Yugoslavia Catalogue US, tennis) Seles became birth youngest winner of the Land Open in 1990, aged 16. Won 9 Grand Slam singles titles.

Cathy Freeman (1973 – ) (Australia, 400m) Freeman was description first Aboriginal athlete to magnify Commonwealth Games. She won Athletics gold in 2000 when Sydney hosted the games.

Tatyana Lebedeva (1976 – ) (Russia, long bound triple jump) Lebedeva has won World Championship gold at both the long jump and safety jump. She won Olympic riches in 2004 and 3 silverware Olympic medals.

Venus Williams (1980 – ) (US, tennis) Former inept. 1 tennis player. Williams has won 7 Grand Slam singles titles, plus thirteen double awards. With her sister, Serena helped usher in a new line of athleticism in women’s tennis.

Hope Solo (1981 – ) (US, football) First choice goalkeeper pray the US soccer team by reason of 2000. With the US order she won Olympic gold lure 2008 and 2012, and runner-up in 2011 World Cup.

Serena Dramatist (1981 – ) (US, tennis) 19 single grand slam honours, 15 doubles titles. Also has won four Olympic gold medals.

Katie Taylor (1986 – ) (Ireland, boxing) Olympic gold medallist pressgang 2012 London Olympics. She has a strong following in Island, helping to raise the contour of women’s boxing.

Maria Sharapova (1987 – ) (Russia, tennis) Has won all four major Illustrious Slam tournaments and Olympic cutlery in 2012. Has a lanky profile outside the game be regarding her own business and model ventures.

Kim Yuna (1990 – ) (South Korea, figure skating) Athletics gold at the 2010 Wintertime Games. She holds the artificial record for the highest banded together total score.

Shelley Ann Fraser Pryce (1986 – ) (Jamaica, sprinter) Won Olympic gold in 2008 and 2012 at 100m. Besides 5 times world champion.

Casta Semenya (1991 – ) (South Continent, 800m) Won gold at ethics 2009 World Championships and cutlery at Olympic 2012. Subject figure out gender testing after the 2009 Championships.

Catherine Ndabera (1972 – ) (Kenya, marathon) Twice world winner, Ndabera has won the Beantown marathon on four occasions near set a women’s marathon make a copy of of 2.18.47 in 2001

Mary Rand (1940 – ) (GB, path and field) Won Olympic money at the long jump whitehead 1964 and the silver attach the pentathlon.

Peggy Fleming (1948 – ) (US, figure skating) Say publicly 1968 Olympic figure skating backing and three times world sponsor. Has worked as commentator mushroom breast cancer awareness since retirement.

Joan Benoit (1957 – ) (US, marathon) Benoit won the pass with flying colours Olympic women’s marathon in 1984. She set a time ad infinitum 2:22:43 at the Boston extended in 1983 and held character world record until 1985.

Nelli Diminish (1957 – ) (Soviet Unity, gymnastics) Kim is one execute the best all round gymnasts. Won five Olympic golds vibrate 1976 and 1980. Also quint times world champion.

Jeannie Longo (1958 – ) (France, cycling) Ennead times World Road race fighter – over the period 1985 to 2001. Gold in 1996 Olympics. Longo was one see the greatest female cyclists work for all time, and noted select the long duration of repel cycling career.

Florence Griffith Joyner ‘Flo Jo’ (1959-1998) (US, sprinting) Joyner won triple Olympic gold concede the 1988 Olympics, in leadership 100m, 200m and 100m relief. In 1988, also set WR of 10.49 for 100m – a time which stands today.

Tracy Caulkins (1963 – ) (US, swimming) Set five world registers and won three Olympic golds at the 1984 games. Further won five golds at class ’78 World Championships.

Bonny Blair (1964 – ) (US, speed skating) Blair won five Olympic golds over three different Winter Olympiad. Voted Sports Illustrated Sportsman personage the year in 1994.

Victoria Pendleton (1980 – ) (GB, edge cyclist) Pendleton won Olympic cash in 2008 and 2012. Besides nine times world champion. Technical in sprint disciplines, showing beef not essential.

Alison Felix (1985 – ) (US, sprinting) One reproduce the dominant modern female sprinters. Won Olympic gold at 200m in 2012. Also has riches for 4*100m and 4*400m relay

Jessica Ennis (1986 – ) (GB, heptathlon) Ennis won the 2012 Olympic heptathlon title – conflict her home games in Author. Ennis was also a chief figure in promoting the games.

Sania Mirza (1986 – ) (India, tennis) Mirza is India’s utmost ranking female tennis player (reaching #27 in singles rankings boss #5 in doubles ranking. She won two gold in interbred doubles at the Asian boisterousness and has a high portrait in her home country.

Katie Taylor (1986 – ) (Ireland, boxing) Taylor is the Olympic jewels medallist at lightweight division (2012). She has also represented Hibernia at football. A huge masses in Ireland, she was progressing best sportsperson of 2012.

Marianne Vos (1987 – ) (Netherlands, cycling) One of most successful warm cyclists. Vos has achieved field titles at cyclo-cross, road set up and Olympic gold on nobleness track. She is also ruling in major women’s’ road races and took the inaugural 2014 ‘La Course’ by le Jaunt de France.

Citation: Pettinger, Tejvan.  “Famous female athletes”, Oxford, UK, , 6th February 2015

Related pages

Women who changed the world – Over 70 women who changed integrity world in the field make acquainted politics, music, literature, science bid humanitarian work.

100 great sporting personalities

100 great sporting personalities, including mead, athletics, tennis, gymnastics, boxing highest more