Baroness Heyhoe Flint
(1939-2017)
Cert Ed, 1960 | HonDSc, 2003
ENGLAND CRICKET CAPTAIN AND CAMPAIGNER
“She was our role model, the person we aspired to be. She didn’t believe anything was impossible.”
In January 2017 UK sport lost a legend when Rachael Heyhoe Flint passed away.
She was the face of women’s cricket, putting it on the map in this country and beyond.
Cricket and the battle for equality came early to Rachael. Her son Ben tells how, at the age of eight, she was playing cricket with a group of boys in the street, which fell foul of the law in post-war Britain. “A policeman caught them and began taking down names and addresses. But only the boys. Rachael insisted that he take her name too, only to be told, ‘Girls don’t play cricket’.”
Little did that policeman know Rachael would become a trailblazer for women in sport, her achievements peppered with a series of firsts.
As England captain from 1966 to 1977, she was the first woman to be awarded an MBE for services to cricket. Her international career lasted 23 years. A gifted sportswoman, she also represented England in hockey.
In 1972 she organised the first women’s World Cup – two years before the men – and captained England to victory.
Not content with that, she became the first female sports presenter on television in 1973. This was just part of a distinguished career in journalism and public relations, working for the Daily Telegraph among other papers.
Later she led the successful campaign to open up membership to women of the world’s most famous cricket club, the MCC. In recognition she became one of its first ten female Honorary Life Members.
She also made her presence felt in football, as a director at her beloved Wolverhampton Wanderers, and took her campaigning to another Lords when she became a baroness in 2010.
Rachael’s fearless spirit was a perfect fit for Dartford College of Physical Education – later absorbed by Greenwich. Under the leadership of Madame Bergman Ӧsterberg, the college was the UK’s first women’s physical education institution and introduced netball and the gymslip to this country.
Rachael later said: “To me, Dartford speaks of cricket and my beginnings. I could never have had my wonderful life in sport if I hadn’t been there.”
“Rachael was the one we all talked about when I was at Dartford in the 70s. She was our role model, the person we aspired to be. She didn’t believe anything was impossible – for her the glass ceiling didn’t exist.”
Anne Stuart, Chairman, Bergman Ӧsterberg Union
Baroness Heyhoe Flint
(1939-2017)
Cert Ed, 1960 | HonDSc, 2003
ENGLAND CRICKET CAPTAIN AND CAMPAIGNER
“She was our role model, the person we aspired to be. She didn’t believe anything was impossible.”
In January 2017 UK sport lost a legend when Rachael Heyhoe Flint passed away.
She was the face of women’s cricket, putting it on the map in this country and beyond.
Cricket and the battle for equality came early to Rachael. Her son Ben tells how, at the age of eight, she was playing cricket with a group of boys in the street, which fell foul of the law in post-war Britain. “A policeman caught them and began taking down names and addresses. But only the boys. Rachael insisted that he take her name too, only to be told, ‘Girls don’t play cricket’.”
Little did that policeman know Rachael would become a trailblazer for women in sport, her achievements peppered with a series of firsts.
As England captain from 1966 to 1977, she was the first woman to be awarded an MBE for services to cricket. Her international career lasted 23 years. A gifted sportswoman, she also represented England in hockey.
In 1972 she organised the first women’s World Cup – two years before the men – and captained England to victory.
Not content with that, she became the first female sports presenter on television in 1973. This was just part of a distinguished career in journalism and public relations, working for the Daily Telegraph among other papers.
Later she led the successful campaign to open up membership to women of the world’s most famous cricket club, the MCC. In recognition she became one of its first ten female Honorary Life Members.
She also made her presence felt in football, as a director at her beloved Wolverhampton Wanderers, and took her campaigning to another Lords when she became a baroness in 2010.
Rachael’s fearless spirit was a perfect fit for Dartford College of Physical Education – later absorbed by Greenwich. Under the leadership of Madame Bergman Ӧsterberg, the college was the UK’s first women’s physical education institution and introduced netball and the gymslip to this country.
Rachael later said: “To me, Dartford speaks of cricket and my beginnings. I could never have had my wonderful life in sport if I hadn’t been there.”
“Rachael was the one we all talked about when I was at Dartford in the 70s. She was our role model, the person we aspired to be. She didn’t believe anything was impossible – for her the glass ceiling didn’t exist.”
Anne Stuart, Chairman, Bergman Ӧsterberg Union
