Tanni Grey-Thompson’s huge determination and fierce competitive spirit led her to become one of Britain’s greatest Paralympic athletes.
But retiring 18 years ago has not knocked the fight out of this determined woman, who is now firmly committed to helping others, particularly disabled children, to enjoy sport and fitness as much as she has.
Over five Paralympic Games, the wheelchair racer, who has spina bifida, won 16 medals, including 11 gold, as well as winning 13 World Championship medals, holding more than 30 world records, and winning the London Marathon six times.
But since retiring in 2007, Grey-Thompson has diverted her tenacity and determination to interests other than competing, including supporting Variety’s Voices for Change campaign, which will work with children and young people across the UK to spotlight the challenges faced by disabled and disadvantaged children in accessing sports.
“I think disability still just gets forgotten,” she insists. “It’s not a game of Top Trumps, it’s not one protected characteristic over the other. It’s about how we think we’re inclusive to everyone in society.”
Voices for Change says research shows disabled children from low-income families face a multitude of barriers to sports participation, including the cost of specialised equipment – adaptive sports equipment can cost up to 100 times more than standard equipment – limited accessible facilities, transport problems, and a shortage of trained coaches with expertise in adaptive sports.
“We need disabled children to have better access to sports, whether that’s through the right equipment, training or getting to and from activities,” says Grey-Thompson. “Not every child will become a Paralympian, but every child should have the chance to try out sports – and even fail.”
And does she feel optimistic about getting more disabled children active?
“I do, but it’s really difficult,” she admits. “I think it’s something we need to take seriously – it’s about being fit and healthy, it’s keeping people out of the NHS. We know that the fitter and healthier you are, you’re better able to learn, so it all links together.”
She adds: “The cost of living is having a massive impact on families, and there’s an impact to them being fit and healthy as well. So there’s lots of different layers to this.”
Although Grey-Thompson, who became a Dame for her services to sport in 2005, and was created a life peer in 2010, has a strong voice in advocating for disabled children’s sporting opportunities, she firmly believes keeping fit and healthy should be priority for everyone.
“You know, 80% of women are not fit enough to be healthy – this is true for non-disabled women as well as disabled. We as a nation need to be fitter and healthier.”
And whether that’s disabled people who use wheelchairs – “there’s loads you can do in your chair,” she stresses – or the non-disabled, “There’s lots that the vast majority of people can do. But if you don’t have a good experience through school, or you don’t have the ability to go to sports facilities or to clubs outside school, then you start on the path so young of being inactive, and it’s just so important that everyone is [active].”
It wouldn’t hurt for less active people to take a leaf out of Grey-Thompson’s book. The 55-year-old uses a hand-bike at home, goes to the gym, lifts weights, and does plenty of stretching. “I try and do something every day,” she says.
“I grew up in a really sporty family, but in the early years, it was about being fit and healthy. It wasn’t about the Paralympic pathway, it was just about being strong enough to transfer myself [from the wheelchair] and do things for myself.
“I was always very competitive, and then that kicked in, and I had the chance to play sport at a more serious level. But now, as I get older, being fit and healthy is still incredibly important.”
And being healthy includes eating a good diet, which Grey-Thompson says she does – although she’s not averse to a takeaway occasionally. “I absolutely had to be careful about my diet as an athlete, and now, although I’m not training 15 times a week, I’m still careful – as you get older, you have to be. I think I’ve always been pretty careful with my diet though.
“I do eat junk food, but I’d like to think it’s irregularly.”
But she points out: “Eating well – there’s a financial cost to it. It’s not always easy to eat well for lots of different reasons, for a lot of people.”
The Voices for Change campaign was launched at the Variety’s Disability Sports Awards, which is another initiative Grey-Thompson supports, as well as being Chair of Sport Wales and patron of many charities, chancellor of Northumbria University, a TV and radio presenter, wife to research chemist Ian Thompson and mother to their 22-year-old daughter, Carys.
But does such a huge list of roles mean she has no time at all to relax?
She laughs. “I do get time to relax – physical activity is really important because that’s part of my relaxation time. For me, physical activity means you’re not thinking about work, and you get that chance to be away from just daily life. It’s a really important part of my daily life.”
Tanni Grey-Thompson is supporting Variety’s Voices for Change campaign, which is aimed at breaking down barriers preventing disabled children from low-income families from accessing sports and physical activities.
