Dina Asher-Smith [1] is a household name, and that's for damn good reasons. She's a British sprinter, and not only the fastest British woman of all time, but she was also the first British woman to win a major global sprint title. In the athletics world, Asher-Smith is basically as big as it gets, and in the lead-up to the 2020 Summer Olympics [2], we'll be hearing more and more about this south Londoner.
We decided to dive deep and learn everything we could about her (we want to be well-informed when we cheer her on in Tokyo, right?). From her many athletic accolades to her ongoing work in thrusting sportswomen into the mainstream consciousness, keep reading for six things you need to know about Asher-Smith.
She's the Fastest Woman Sprinter in British History
By the age of 19, Dina Asher-Smith became the fastest British woman sprinter [3] of all time. She secured the title when she ran 100 metres in 11.02 seconds — coming second to Dafne Schippers (who ran it in 10.94 seconds) at the 2015 FBK Games in Hengelo, Holland. It's a title she's defended many times since.
She Was the First British Woman to Win a Major Global Sprint Title
At the 2019 World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar, the 23-year-old sprinter won silver in the 100-metre sprint, before blowing the competition out of the water during the 200-metre sprint, winning gold and setting a British record of 21.88 seconds [4]. It was this result that earned Asher-Smith the title of the first British woman sprinter to win a major global sprint title.
Speaking to BBC News after the race, Asher-Smith was emotional, saying, "I woke up today thinking, 'This is it. This is the moment you did all your work for'. The tiredness disappeared." Asher-Smith is also the first British person to win a world of Olympic sprint title since Linford Christie won gold in a 100-metre sprint at the 1993 World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany.
Dina Asher-Smith Was Turned Into a Barbie Doll Ahead of the 2020 Olympics
Ahead of International Women's Day on March 8, Mattel announced the release of a Dina Asher-Smith "Shero" Barbie doll [5]. The doll is part of the Barbie Dream Gap Fund [6], which is Mattel's ongoing global initiative to raise awareness about the limiting factors that often prevent girls from reaching their full potential.
In the lead-up to the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Barbie is spotlighting women role models in sports. "Growing up, sportswomen were less visible in the media and there is still a gap when it comes to women's sports, which is why representation is so important," Asher-Smith said in a statement released by Barbie. "For Barbie to champion female athletes and different sports shows future generations that anything is possible. I hope little girls will see my doll and be inspired to take up and continue to enjoy sports!" In addition to the Asher-Smith doll, Barbie has honoured Paralympians Sümeyye Boyacı and Madison de Rozario with their own dolls.
Dina Asher-Smith Has Fought For More Mainstream Coverage For Sportswomen
Dina Asher-Smith has long been an advocate for sportswomen and, in particular, their representation in mainstream media coverage. In an opinion piece she wrote for The Telegraph in November 2019, Asher-Smith explained that visibility is everything for women athletes and "women's sport," which is also known as, well, sport.
She kept getting asked the question "Haven't women in sport had an amazing year?" and explained that, yes, on one hand, women had a fantastic year in 2019. "But to some extent the question doesn't sit comfortably with me," Asher-Smith wrote. "Because sportswomen have been performing fantastically, breaking records and barriers for decades and the only thing that's actually changed is the coverage. . . [and] the volume of media interest."
After attending the British Fashion Awards [7] with Elle in December, Asher-Smith posted a similar message on Instagram. "Thank you so much for your continued support, coverage and elevation of us to be cross-category role models 🥳," she wrote. "I sincerely hope that we continue to get more mainstream coverage and more collabs for sportswomen in 2020 🏃🏾♀️🏋🏾♀️🤸🏾♀️🏌🏾♀️🏄🏾♀️."
She Was Named Sportswoman of the Year in 2019
Dina Asher-Smith won a lot of awards in 2019, both on the track and off it. In November 2019, she won the Sunday Times sportswoman of the year award for the second year running, and later that same month, she was named sportswoman of the year at the Sports Journalists Association (SJA) Awards. But Asher-Smith clearly doesn't do things by halves, continuing her winning streak well into December, when she won the Pride of Sport's sporting hero for 2019 award, then came in third in the BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2019 awards, behind Ben Stokes and Lewis Hamilton.
She Grew Up in Orpington, Greater London
Dina Asher-Smith was born and raised just south of London, in Orpington, which is part of the Bromley borough of Greater London.