Katherine Dinah "Goldie" Sayers (born 16 July 1982), is a former British

javelin throw The javelin throw is a track and field event where the javelin, a spear about in length, is thrown. The javelin thrower gains momentum by running within a predetermined area. Javelin throwing is an event of both the men's decathlon and the wom ...

er, who won a bronze medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics. She was born in Newmarket, Suffolk, United Kingdom. On 20 May 2007, Sayers set a new British record in the javelin at , thus becoming the first British woman to throw over 65 metres since javelins were redesigned in 1999. Sayers set the record when competing for her university,

Loughborough Loughborough ( ) is a market town in the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England, the seat of Charnwood Borough Council and Loughborough University. At the 2011 census the town's built-up area had a population of 59,932 , the second large ...

, at the Loughborough International match. She cemented this achievement at the Norwich Union Glasgow Grand Prix on 3 June 2007 where she beat a top-class international field in rainy conditions with a throw of 63.59 m. Defeated rivals included European champion and Olympic silver medallist Steffi Nerius and world champion Barbora Špotáková.

Early life

Sayers was educated at Fairstead House School, Newmarket, and at The King's School, Ely. She played hockey, netball and tennis at county level, and was an under 11 national table tennis champion.

Career highlights

Sayers first came to prominence when setting national junior records and winning national titles, in 2001. Sayers also served as the captain of Great Britain's women's under 20 team, this season. The following season, Sayers finished in sixth place at the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

. From 2003 to 2007, Sayers won five consecutive national titles but had limited success at major championships, failing to make the final at her first Olympics in 2004 and finishing twelfth at both the 2005 World Championships and 2006 European Championships but she did finish fifth at the 2006 Commonwealth Games. The early 2007 season boded well for Sayers, setting two

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and defeating high-class rivals, such as

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

's European champion Steffi Nerius and the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

's Barbora Špotáková, who went on to win the world title that season, at a championship where Sayers finished 18th in qualifying, with her worst result of the season: 57.23 m. On 15 March 2008 Sayers won the European Cup of Winter Throwing title in

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, entertai ...

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, with a throw of 63.65 m. Sayers originally finished fourth at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China, setting a new British record of 65.75 m. However in 2016 the Russian third placed athlete,

Mariya Abakumova Mariya Vasiliyevna Abakumova (russian: Мария Васильевна Абакумова; born 15 January 1986) is a Russian former track and field athlete who competed in the javelin throw. Career Abakumova discovered her love for athletics ...

, tested positive for banned substances after a re-analysis of her sample, meaning that Sayers would be upgraded to the bronze medal position. She eventually received her Olympic bronze medal on 20 July 2019 at the London Anniversary Games, 11 years later. She improved her British record to 66.17m at the

London Grand Prix The London Diamond League, formerly known as the London Grand Prix and subsequently as the Anniversary Games, is an annual athletics event held in London, England. Previously one of the five IAAF Super Grand Prix events, it is now part of the Di ...

Diamond League meeting in London in 2012. On 4 July 2012, Sayers carried the

Olympic Torch The Olympic flame is a symbol used in the Olympic movement. It is also a symbol of continuity between ancient and modern games. Several months before the Olympic Games, the Olympic flame is lit at Olympia, Greece. This ceremony starts the Olym ...

through Bourne in Lincolnshire. On 7 August 2012, Sayers competed in the women's javelin at the 2012 Summer Olympics, but had sustained an injury to her right arm and was unable to feel her throwing hand. She threw three attempts but failed to throw the qualification distance and so stepped over the line and was knocked out of the competition without recording a mark. Sayers subsequently had elbow surgery which involved a ligament being removed from her right wrist and inserted in her left arm. She lost her funding from

UK Athletics UK Athletics (UKA) is the governing body for the sport of athletics in the United Kingdom. It is responsible for overseeing the governance of athletics events in the UK as well as athletes, their development, and athletics officials. The orga ...

at the end of 2014, but philanthropist Barrie Wells agreed to fund Sayers' training in exchange for helping heptathlete

Katarina Johnson-Thompson Katarina Mary Johnson-Thompson (born 9 January 1993) is an English athlete primarily known as an elite multi-eventer, both as a heptathlete and an indoor pentathlete. She has been World Champion in both disciplines, and a double Commonwealth ...

improve her javelin throwing.

International competitions

Personal life

Sayers' father, Pete Sayers, who died in 2005, was a bluegrass musician and the first Englishman to appear at the '' Grand Ole Opry''.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sayers, Goldie 1982 births Living people People from Newmarket, Suffolk Sportspeople from Suffolk English female javelin throwers British female javelin throwers Olympic female javelin throwers Olympic athletes of Great Britain Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games competitors for England Athletes (track and field) at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2014 Commonwealth Games World Athletics Championships athletes for Great Britain British Athletics Championships winners AAA Championships winners Alumni of Loughborough University People educated at King's Ely