We are delighted that Pauline has joined our BRIT Ambassador family.
Pauline represented Great Britain at the Paralympics and World Championships between 1998 and 2004, winning silver in the Women’s Javelin F37 event at the 2000 Paralympic Games in Sydney and silver in the Women’s Javelin F35-F38 event at the IPC World Championships in France.
“Having experienced mental health challenges myself, I am delighted to be joining the BRIT Ambassador family to support young adult mental health in the UK. The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting our lives in many different ways and feelings of isolation and loneliness are commonplace. It is so important that we support each other and ensure that young adults with existing mental health challenges, or those who feel isolated and vulnerable, receive help when they need it and know where to find it.
The British Inspiration Trust (BRIT) are determined to support young adults throughout the UK and have spent time visiting universities and colleges in Scotland to understand the issues affecting our student and young adults. For the BRIT 2021 Challenge, they have chosen to partner with four charities who provide vital support to students and young adults in Scotland; PAPYRUS – Prevention of Young Suicide, Nightline Association, Student Minds and the Charlie Waller Trust. This means that all donations raised by the BRIT 2021 Challenge will be shared equally between five mental health charities and they can continue to deliver support to students and young adults in Scotland.
As a former Paralympic athlete, I believe every young adult and student should have the opportunity to participate in team challenges and events; this ensures they are able to grow in confidence and are valued and treated as equals. I am thrilled that the BRIT 2021 Challenge has been designed to be inclusive and enables students and staff of all abilities to take part by hand-cycling, cycling, wheelchair pushing, swimming, walking, jogging, running, rowing or paddling (canoeing, kayaking or paddle-boarding). I hope every UK university, college and student union enters teams in the BRIT 2021 Challenge and encourages their students and staff to take part at home or on campus.
I urge my fellow Scottish Olympians, Paralympians and athletes to join our BRIT Ambassador family so young adults and students at every Scottish university and college are inspired to take part in the BRIT 2021 Challenge. At a time when we all need inspiration, British Sporting Icons have an opportunity to unite in support of young adult mental health and have an extraordinary impact that will benefit the lives of hundreds of thousands of students and young adults throughout Scotland
I look forward to supporting students and staff at the University of Edinburgh, Fife College and Carnegie College as they take on their BRIT 2021 Challenge.”
Pauline attended Buckhaven High School in Fife and started her sporting career as a swimmer and then moved to table tennis, before settling into athletics.
Running changed to throwing and it was in the Javelin that Pauline found international success. Before she was selected to represent Great Britain, Pauline made her mark in Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association (CPISRA) and IPC (now known as the World Para Athletics Championships) Athletics World and European Championships.
Pauline was a beneficiary of the Scottish Institute of Sport and the many services it offered to disability performance athletes.
In 1998, Pauline won bronze at the IPC Athletics World Championships in Birmingham when she competed in the Women’s 400 metres T37 event. Pauline also competed in the Women’s 200 metres T37 event and came 5th.
Pauline was selected to represent Great Britain at the Paralympic Games in Sydney, Australia in 2000, where she won silver in the Women’s Javelin F37 event.
In 2002, Pauline won silver in the Women’s Javelin F35-38 event at the IPC Athletics World Championships in Villeneuve d’Ascq, France.
She also represented Great Britain at the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece where she reached the Final Round in the Women’s Javelin F35 – 38 event.
For more information about CPISRA, please visit their website.
For more information about the World Para Athletics Championships, please visit their website.