REBECCA ADLINGTON
Adlington became Britain’s most successful swimmer for more than a century with two gold medals in Beijing. Her victories in the women’s 400m and 800m freestyle - including a world record in the latter - secured the 19-year-old’s place in history

NICOLE COOKE
The 25-year-old cyclist from Wales won the first of 19 gold medals for Team GB with a sensational victory in the women’s road race. Overcoming appalling weather, Cooke became the first Welsh Olympic champion since horseman Richard Meade in 1972. Seven weeks later, she ended an exceptional season by becoming women’s road race world champion for the first time

CHRISTINE OHURUOGU
Despite lying in fifth position heading into the final straight, the 24-year-old from Stratford, east London, overhauled her tiring rivals to claim the Olympic 400m title on the finishing line. She is only the eighth female British athlete to win gold in an Olympic track and field event

VICTORIA PENDLETON
Winner of the 2007 award, the 28-year-old from Hertfordshire overcame Australian cyclist Anna Meares in the Olympic sprint final to banish any memories of Athens when she came close to quitting the sport

PAULA RADCLIFFE
Once again Radcliffe’s hopes of becoming Olympic champion were devastated by injury - 12 weeks before the Games she was diagnosed with a stress fracture of the femur in her left leg - and it was no surprise she finished in 23rd position in the Beijing marathon. However, last month the 34-year-old world record holder claimed her third New York Marathon

REBECCA ROMERO
Less than two years after winning silver in Athens in 2004, in the quadruple sculls crew, Romero switched her attention to cycling. She quickly made an impression, becoming a two-time world champion and only the second person in Olympic history to win medals in two disciplines at summer Games. She beat teammate Wendy Houvenaghel in the women’s 3,000m individual pursuit final

ELEANOR SIMMONDS
Simmonds was considered too young and inexperienced to be eligible for the Beijing Paralympics. But the Swansea schoolgirl, two months before her 14th birthday, swam to gold in the 100m and 400m freestyle. Simmonds - who was born with dwarfism or achondroplasia - is Britain’s youngest individual champion in either the Olympic or Paralympic Games