Women are set to outnumber men in Team GB's squad for Tokyo 2020
Tuesday 12 March 2019 07:17, UK
Women are on course to outnumber men in the Great Britain team for next year's Tokyo Olympic Games, according to chef de mission Mark England.
With 500 days to go to the opening ceremony of the 2020 Games, England says the team is now reaping the rewards of the "impact and inspiration" provided by a number of female trailblazers from London 2012.
Just over 48 per cent of the Great Britain team for London was female but that percentage dropped to 44 per cent for Rio.
"For the first time it looks like we might have more women than men in the Great Britain team for Tokyo as we see the fruition of some fabulous athletic talent", said England.
"We have seen some fantastic role models in multiple Olympic champions like Heather Stanning and Helen Glover, Jade Jones and Nicola Adams. Everybody also looks up to Jessica Ennis-Hill and they have clearly all had a great impact in terms of inspiring a new class of young female athletes which is now emerging."
The International Olympic Committee is striving for 50 per cent representation by women at the Olympic Games and the British Olympic Association's bid to get there first may depend on confirmation of a GB women's football team.
Football's world governing body FIFA claimed in October it had received agreement from all four home unions to field a unified women's team in Tokyo - but the terms are now reportedly being questioned by the Scottish Football Association.
Team GB finished second in the medal table at the last Games in Rio de Janeiro, winning 67 medals, 27 of them gold.
"We have tough shoes to fill from Rio", said England. "Typically, we don't set medal targets but we are hugely confident that the investment by UK Sport and the work that has been undertaken by the home countries' sports institutes and, in particular, by national governing bodies will make Team GB as successful as it was in Rio."
