Deborah Griffin is a pioneer of the growth of women's rugby, both in England and globally.
Biography
Griffin took up the sport of rugby at university in the 1970s, and also played rugby with the Richmond Women's Rugby Club. She was a co-founder of England's Rugby Football Union for Women in 1983, an organisation for which she later served as the chair. She also was one of the principal organisers of the
1991 Women's Rugby World Cup
The 1991 Women's Rugby World Cup was the first Women's Rugby World Cup. The tournament was not approved by the International Rugby Board (IRB), yet it still went ahead despite the disapproval of the sports governing body. France confirmed their par ...
, the first ever Women's Rugby World Cup, which was run despite having no support or financial backing from the International Rugby Board. Griffin later became the first female elected board member of the England
Rugby Football Union
The Rugby Football Union (RFU) is the Sports governing body, national governing body for rugby union in England. It was founded in 1871, and was the sport's international governing body prior to the formation of what is now known as World Rugby ...
in 2014.
Griffin was appointed an
Officer of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
2021 Rugby World Cup
The 2021 Rugby World Cup was the ninth staging of the women's Rugby World Cup, as organised by World Rugby. It was held from 8 October to 12 November 2022 in Auckland and Whangārei, New Zealand. It was originally scheduled to be held in 2021, ...