Tessa Sanderson (born 1956) is a retired British javelin thrower. She appeared in every Summer Olympics from 1976 to 1996, winning the gold medal in the javelin at the 1984 Olympics. She was the first Black British woman to win an Olympic gold medal, and the second track and field athlete to compete at six Olympics. Sanderson won gold medals at three Commonwealth Games and at the 1992 IAAF World Cup. She set five Commonwealth records and ten British national records in the javelin, as well as records at junior and masters levels. Sanderson had a rivalry with fellow Briton Fatima Whitbread, who took the bronze in the 1984 Olympics. Sanderson was a sports reporter for Sky News when it began broadcasting in 1989. She was vice-chair of Sport England from 1999 to 2005, and later established the Tessa Sanderson Foundation and Academy, which aims to encourage young people and people with disabilities to take up sport. She became a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2004. (Full article...)