Whitbread was abandoned in an apartment as a baby and raised in children's homes until she was 14. There was some parental contact but it was unsatisfactory and she was also sexually abused by her mother's boyfriend.

She discovered she was a gifted athlete and was befriended by her white coach, who adopted her when she was 14

has been world and European champion women's javelin thrower and won Olympic bronze (1984) and silver (1988) medals in the sport. She retired in 1990 due to shoulder problems, and now runs her own sports marketing company, Chafford Hundred, is active ion the British Hate Crimes Commission, and develops athletics programs for 11-17-year-olds in the southeast of England.

References

Whitbread, Fatima, and Blue, Adrianne. Fatima: The Autobiography of Fatima Whitbread. (London: Pelham, 1988)
"A Family of My Own," BBC1 TV, 4 January 2000
Crinnion, Jane. "Famous Then: May 20, 1900: Fatima Whitbread," The Guardian Weekend [London], 6 May 2000, p. 78.

Indexes

African
Uk/great Britain
20th Century
21st Century
Civil Rights, Advocacy
Sports
Sexual
Formal, American/European-Type Adoption
Birth or Infancy
Child Abandoned or Rejected by Birth Parent(s)
Family Friends or Acquaintances
Priest, Religious, Teacher, Coach, Mentor, Patron, Apprentice Master or Owner
Adoptive/Foster Family Included Birth Child(ren)
Trans-Racial, Trans-Tribal, International or Trans-Cultural Adoption or Fostering
Customary or Traditional Adoption, Informal and Extra-Legal Care
Institutional Care
Always in Contact or Knew Identities
Contact Unsatisfactory