won the gold medal at the 1972 Summer Olympics' women's pentathlon. Vedad met javelin thrower David Ottley at a stadium and asked him if she could use his javelin. He asked her to wait until the coach arrived. The coach was Margaret Whitbread, a physical education teacher at a local school, whom Vedad had previously met when Whitbread refereed a netball match that she played in. After discovering that Vedad stayed at a children's home, Margaret Whitbread passed on some boots and a javelin from a girl who had retired from the event. Three years later, Vedad was adopted by Margaret Whitbread and her family. She spent her teenage years in Chadwell St Mary, Essex, where she attended the Torells School in nearby Grays. Career Early career Whitbread won the English Schools' Athletics Championships intermediate title in 1977, and set a national intermediate record of in winning the Amateur Athletic Association (AAA) women's championship the following month. She placed sixth in the javelin throw at the 1978 Commonwealth Games, throwing . Whitbread won gold in the javelin event at the 1979 European Athletics Junior Championships, throwing . She was selected for the 1980 Summer Olympics event, but, achieving only , she failed to qualify for the final. At the 1982 Commonwealth Games, Whitbread took the bronze medal, throwing , which was behind champion Sue Howland, from Australia. Having finished behind fellow British competitor Tessa Sanderson in a run of 18 competitions, Whitbread finally defeated her rival with a throw of to win the UK Athletics Championship in 1983, Whitbread won the silver medal at the inaugural World Championships in 1983, having narrowly qualified for the final. She led throughout the final until Tiina Lillak bettered her mark with her last throw of the contest. A few days before the 1984 Summer Olympics, Whitbread had a stomach operation but was still able to travel to the Games and compete. She finished in the bronze medal position, with , and Sanderson () won gold. Lillak, who had a stress fracture in her right foot, won the silver medal. After the result, Whitbread commented that "I am so disappointed... I was not right on the night." At the 1986 Commonwealth Games in July, Whitbread broke the Games record twice during her first three throws, and led with a distance of , before Sanderson achieved and won. Whitbread sat down crying on the field