Great Britain with double-flag holders at the Olympiad

Swimmer Anita Lonsborough became the first woman to hold a British flag at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.

British Olympic team captain Mark England said they now want to praise the team since 1964.

That band left a true historical legacy. It was a wonderful moment for women and I hope this year’s edition leaves a similar mark.

For the first time in the country’s history, this year it will have a female and a male flag bearer. The International Olympic Committee changed its rules last year and began allowing – and encouraging – countries to have flag bearers of every gender.

Previously, it was an athlete who carried the country’s flag at the inauguration, and of the 26 British flag-bearers at the Summer Olympics, only three were women.

Three women carried the Swedish flag

Sweden also has only three women who have had the honor of carrying the Swedish flag: the boat riders Agneta Anderson (1988), Anna Olson (2000) and swimmer Therese Fennel at the last Rio de Janeiro Summer Games 2016. How Sweden chooses to do it in Tokyo is not over yet.

The Tokyo Olympics will also be the first ever gender-balanced Olympics, with 49% female athletes and 51% male.

The Olympic Games will be set in Tokyo between July 23 and August 8.

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