BBC Sport’s ‘Generation Next’ follows a group of inspirational young athletes, from a range of backgrounds and sports, as they bid to become our next sporting superstars.
“Inspiring more people of colour to take up my sport would be a much greater and more significant achievement for me than winning Olympic gold,” states Kyra Edwards.
Sporting success is traditionally measured in medals – particularly by the British Rowing team who have topped the Olympic standings at the past three Games.
However, 23-year-old Edwards is determined to leave what would be arguably an even greater legacy than those who made rowing one of Team GB’s most decorated sports.
Classmates who knew her at school will not be surprised to hear that she has such aspirations. They learned about her determination the hard way.
“I was quite different to most girls in terms of how athletic, sporty and competitive I was, while my friends were more girly and into their hair, make-up and nails,” recalls Edwards, who played football for Nottingham Forest’s academy in her teens.
“I was focused [on winning] and I remember my friends wouldn’t speak to me for about a week once because I was getting way too into a game – fouling, hitting and getting really competitive.”
As a young teenager she learned to control that passion, but almost a decade on now wonders whether she was actually suppressing her “real self”.
“I was told a lot when I was younger that I should stop being so feisty and it was really hard for me to take in as I didn’t know why someone would say that to me,” she tells BBC Sport.
