| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationality | British (English) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 5 April 1950 Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 163 cm (5 ft 4 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 55 kg (121 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event | Sprinting | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | London Olympiades | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Doris Anita Neil (born 5 April 1950) is a retired British international sprinter. In 1968, she became the first black British woman Olympian at the 1968 Summer Olympics. [2]
Neil was born in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, [3] to an African-American father and a white English mother. Neil’s father was a staff sergeant with the United States Army stationed in Wellingborough during World War II, where he met her mother, Florence, a local woman. [4] Neil's father, who travelled back and forth between the US and England, left when she was six. In his absence Neil's mother raised their five children single-handed with the support of Neil's grandparents. [5]
Neil worked as a machinist in a clothing factory and trained in her spare time. From an impoverished family Neil was forced to rely on charity to travel to competitions and obtain equipment. [2]
Known primarily as a sprinter, Neil's first competition for Great Britain was in the long jump in 1966. [6] She competed for Great Britain in the 1967 European Cup.
At a national competition in Portsmouth, she won the 100 yards and broke the national record (10.6 seconds). At the same meet she was part of the 4 x 110m relay team who set a World Record. Neil was invited to Buckingham Palace which she remembered because she met George Best. [5]
Neil finished second behind Val Peat in the 100 metres event at the 1968 WAAA Championships. [7] Shortly afterwards at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City, she represented Great Britain in the 100 metres comeptition, where she was eliminated in the second quarter final and the 4 × 100 metres relay, finishing seventh in the final. [3] She was encouraged by her hero Mary Rand and she became a member of the women's athletics club London Olympiades and is considered 'a pioneer in the first generation of Black British female Olympic Athletes'. [3] [8] :319
In 1969, she competed at the European Athletics Championships in Athens, [3] where she won bronze medals in the 100 metres as well as in 4 x 100-metres relay. [8] :205
Neil became the national 100 metres champion after winning the British WAAA Championships title at the 1970 WAAA Championships [9] and the following month, Neil represented England at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh and won a silver medal in the 4 x 100 metres relay. [3] [10]
Neil represented Great Britain at the Olympic Games for a second time at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich. [11] Again she progressed to the second round in the 100 metres and to the final in the relay.
Eventually the lack of a coach, insufficient training facilities, and having to support her family financially saw Neil forced into early retirement at just 23 years old. [2] [5]
Neil continues to live in Wellingborough and has participated in local events. [12] In 2012, she was a guest of honour at the opening of the Wellingborough Museum's exhibition on the Olympic Games. A portrait of her hangs in the museum. [13] She also served as guest of honour at the official opening of the Knights Court in Wellingborough in 2014. [14]
Neil was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2024 Birthday Honours for services to athletics. [15]
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