• London Olympics 2012

Ennis hits back at 'fat' slurs

ESPN staff
May 31, 2012
Jessica Ennis set a British heptathlon record last weekend © PA Photos
Enlarge

Jessica Ennis has reacted angrily to suggestions she was branded "fat" by a noteworthy figure within UK Athletics.

Last week Ennis' coach Toni Minichiello claimed a "high-ranking person" had suggested that "she's fat and she's got too much weight".

Ennis responded by setting a British heptathlon record in Austria over the weekend, leaving her as favourite for the gold medal in that event ahead of London 2012.

But before the Games, Ennis is focusing on making sure that young British girls maintain a healthy body image.

"I'm really happy with my weight; I don't think I'm fat," Ennis told Sky Sports News. "I train as hard as I can so that my body's in the best shape for me to perform as well as I can.

"I just don't want young girls thinking that I think I'm fat, and then they start worrying about their weight. I think that's one of the most important things to take from it.

"Weight can be a very sensitive issue, and I think at a younger age it's important to make sure that there's those right role models [out there]. There's some really sad cases, and it's something we need to work on: making sure comments like that aren't said."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
Close

ABOUT COOKIES

To help make this website better, to improve and personalize your experience and for advertising purposes, are you happy to accept cookies and other technologies.

More Info Here Cookie Choices