Fatima Whitbread, is a British retired javelin thrower. She broke the world record with a throw of 77.44Â m in the qualifying round of the 1986 European Athletics Championships in Stuttgart, and became the first British athlete to set a world record in a throwing event. Whitbread went on to win the European title that year, and took the gold medal at the 1987 World Championships. She is also a two-time Olympic medallist, winning bronze at the 1984 Summer Olympics and silver at the 1988 Summer Olympics. She was voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 1987 and received the Helen Rollason Award in 2023.