Diane Bell (born 11 October 1963) is a British former

judoka is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

. She won the 56–61 kg event at the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and officially branded as Seoul 1988 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. 159 nations were represe ...

in Seoul, but at the time women's judo was still a

demonstration sport A demonstration sport, or exhibition sport, is a sport which is played to promote it, rather than as part of standard medal competition. This occurs commonly during the Olympic Games but may also occur at other sporting events. Demonstration sport ...

, so unlike the men Bell did not enter the

list of Olympic medalists in judo The following is the list of Olympic medalists in the sport of judo. Men Extra lightweight *60 kg Half lightweight *65 kg (1980–1996) *66 kg (2000–) Lightweight *68 kg (1964) *63 kg (1972–1976) *71 kg ...

. She also won two

World Judo Championships The World Judo Championships are the highest level of international judo competition, next to the quadrennial judo events at the Summer Olympic Games. The world championships are held by the International Judo Federation annually, except the c ...

, a

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games is a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations, which consists mostly, but not exclusively, of territories of the former British Empire. The event was first held in 1930 ...

gold and three

European Judo Championships The European Judo Championships is the Judo European Championship organized by the European Judo Union. The 2015 European Judo Championships, 2015 and 2019 European Judo Championships, 2019 editions were held during the respective European Games. ...

Judo career

Bell won the

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...

and

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

, and the European Championships in 1984, 1986 and 1988. Bell is Britain's most successful judoka at the

. In total, she has won 3 gold, 3 silver and 5 bronze medals. In 1986, she won the 56–61 kg event at the

1986 Commonwealth Games The 1986 Commonwealth Games were held in Edinburgh, Scotland, between 24 July and 2 August 1986. This was the second Commonwealth Games to be held in Edinburgh. Thirty two of the eligible fifty nine countries (largely African, Asian and Caribbe ...

; the event was a

. In 1988, she won the 56–61 kg event at the

; judo was a demonstration sport at the Games. Bell represented

England at the 1990 Commonwealth Games England competed at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in Auckland, New Zealand, between 24 January and 3 February 1990. England finished second in the medal table. Medal table (top three) The athletes that competed are listed below. Athletics ...

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, and won a

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have b ...

in the 61kg half-middleweight. Bell beat New Zealander Donna Guy-Halkyard in the final. Bell also competed at the

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

and

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

. In addition to her international titles, she is a four times champion of Great Britain, winning the lightweight division at the

British Judo Championships The British Judo Championships are held annually and feature various age and weight categories to determine the British champion. The Championships are currently held at the English Institute of Sport, Sheffield. Until 2013, the Championships ...

in 1982 and 1983 and the light-middleweight division in 1992 and 1994.

Coaching

In 1997, Bell took up coaching. At the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...

in Sydney, Bell cut Deborah Allan's hair on the weighing scales after Allan was found to be over the weight limit for her event.

References

External links

* * 1963 births British female judoka Judoka at the 1992 Summer Olympics Judoka at the 1996 Summer Olympics British sports coaches Living people Goodwill Games medalists in judo Commonwealth Games gold medallists in judo Commonwealth Games gold medallists for England Olympic judoka for Great Britain Judoka at the 1990 Commonwealth Games Competitors at the 1990 Goodwill Games Medallists at the 1990 Commonwealth Games {{UK-judo-bio-stub