‘I used to get asked which footballers I’d slept with’, Gabby Logan on sexism

THE Euros and Wimbledon have finished and we’re already on to the next big sporting event, as we prepare for the opening of the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris next week.

And who better to talk about a summer of sport than Gabby Logan? Fresh from presenting the football coverage in Germany, she’s now preparing to take the lead on the athletics at the Olympics.

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It’s a world away from Gabby’s experiences at the start of her career, when she’d be quizzed on which footballers she’d slept with by male presenters.

“You just wouldn’t have those conversations now,” she says. “There are so many more women in sport. I work with a lot of younger guys and they see it as the norm, whereas it used to be a male stranglehold.

“One of my colleagues in Germany had a baby seven months ago. Her mum and her partner [came to support her], and she had her baby there, too. When I heard that, I thought: ‘Wow that’s major progress.’ I wouldn’t have dared ask: ‘Can I do this?’

“This progress is so important, because otherwise you’re stopping careers when they’re in their ascendancy.”

Gabby, 51, has been married for nearly 25 years to former Scottish international rugby player Kenny Logan, 52.

The couple are parents to twins Lois and Reuben, 19, and over the years she’s learned how to deal with being away from them.

“The family have got used to it all,” she says. “They come out to see me wherever I am. When I’m away, I get into my work zone and become entrenched in what I’m doing. It’s harder when you are at home, because you’re at a loose end.”

‘You have to make an effort in marriage’

Gabby and Kenny appear to have one of the most rock-solid marriages around, so what is their secret?

“I used to be really nervous talking about it,” she admits. “I thought I’d jinx it. But we’re very much a team.

“The key to our relationship is communication, having fun and making time to be together.

“You can’t be apart all the time and expect everything to be great. We are lucky, as we see each other more than people realize.

“The secret is to keep making an effort. Not to be crude, but if you had an amazing sports car, you couldn’t leave it in a garage for 15 years and expect it to work straight away.

“If you have something special, you need to look after it.”

Gabby knows that more than most, after Kenny was diagnosed with prostate cancer following a routine check-up in 2022.

The family have got used to it all. They come out to see me wherever I am

Gabby on her presenting role at big events

To the whole family’s immense relief, he has since been given the all-clear following surgery. She says: “He was very, very lucky to find it, and he’s really good now.”

Despite being the daughter of former Leeds United footballer and football manager Terry Yorath, the Games are what Gabby – who describes herself as an “Olympics nut” – is most passionate about.

“I enjoy it, because it’s still so rare when all those sports and countries come together,” she says.

“The Olympics is the pinnacle for so many of those sports. And once every four years, those sportspeople get to produce their very best, and that’s what makes it special to be an Olympian and a medallist.”

Gabby, who was appointed an MBE in the 2020 New Year Honours list for services to sports broadcasting and promoting women in sport, has personal experience of just how difficult it is to get to the Games.

She was a passionate rhythmic gymnast, representing Wales in the 1990 Commonwealth Games, but never made it into the Olympic squad, thanks to an injury.

“It was my childhood dream,” she says. “It was all I ever wanted and thought about.

“It was something I really wanted to achieve, and I didn’t. That’s something you come to terms with and move on from. But I’m still glad that I get to work near it.”

Of course, the sporting world has not been without its fair share of controversy, with a 2022 report revealing that British gymnasts as young as seven were spat on, slapped, and fat-shamed by adult coaches. Did Gabby have any similar experiences?

“No,” she says. “There would be a lot of negative self-talk. We would put ourselves through quite brutal regimes in terms of what we ate, but it wasn’t externally imposed upon us.

It takes some brave people to speak up and go: ‘This is not right. You can still be good at your sport and you can achieve without that

Gabby on brutal regimes in sport training

“I think how that culture was probably allowed to grow was that we became really good at gymnastics and getting gold medals. When the rewards are so high, a culture developed that was accepted, because people said: ‘Well, this has produced results.’

“It takes some brave people to speak up and go: ‘This is not right. You can still be good at your sport and you can achieve without that.’

“It was really disappointing to hear [the findings of the 2022 report]. The last thing I want is for anyone to have that kind of experience.

“I think the people who spoke up had to do so [in order] to make a big shift in the culture of certain parts of the sport.”

‘Peak WAG time’

Back to this year’s Olympics, which are particularly special for Gabby, as it’s the first time there has been parity and an equal number of female and male athletes competing.

“It’s amazing to think that it was only in the ’80s that certain events were allowed to include women,” she says.

“So it has been a very quick march to equality in the past 20-30 years. In 2012, more women than men won golds for Great Britain.”

And it’s not just athletics that’s getting women more involved. With the success of the Lionesses, Gabby is thrilled football is so accessible to girls now, too.

“I was speaking to Rachel Corsie, the former Scotland footballer, and she said to me: ‘Did you play football as a kid?’ And I said: ‘There were no football teams. There was nowhere for me to play.’

“It’s amazing so many girls are playing at school or playing for clubs outside school now. It’s not to look towards being a Lioness, but to have a great time and enjoy doing a team sport.

“The last time I was in Germany for a football tournament was the 2006 World Cup in Baden-Baden. That was peak WAG time. You look back at those images and we’ve really moved on.

“It does feel like we’re in a more equitable place for women. Girls say: ‘I’ve got bigger aspirations than being a wife. I’d like to actually compete.’”

Having covered the Olympics for such a long time, who is Gabby predicting are going to be the stars in Paris?

“The old guard. I interviewed [diver] Tom Daley when he was 11 years old, before his first Olympics in Beijing. Now he’s a married dad of two and this is his fifth, and probably final, Olympic Games, so I can’t support him more.

“[Rower] Helen Glover, who was a London 2012 hero and has since had three kids. I’m loving that people can have a life and keep their sport going, because it used to be so monastic – they had to retire to get a life.

“At the other end of the spectrum, there are young guns including [runners] Keely Hodgkinson, Josh Kerr, and Matthew Hudson-Smith. [GB’s] got some real talent that’s all bubbling up at the right time.”

‘Grief blindsides you’

Seeing Gabby on our shoot today, there’s no denying that she’s in terrific shape. “[Being 51] doesn’t have to be that stereotype [of old and grey],” she says.

“Exercise and lifestyle are so important in terms of your energy. For me, I broadcast quite late into the night with a lot of people younger than me.

“I want to keep mentally dexterous and have the energy to keep doing that, so that’s why I keep healthy. It’s not so I can walk around taking selfies in my swimsuit. I want to feel good and it’s a good mental release, too.

It’s over 30 years since my brother died, but when you lose somebody you have immediate sadness, and then it can just throw you again any time

Gabby on the death of her brother brother Daniel who died aged just 15

“What I do depends on where I am. I got very into Barry’s Bootcamp in Germany and I did a lot of Pilates.

“When I’m at home, I try to mix it up with weights, running, playing golf, and I like cycling and tennis. The important thing about exercise is to do something you enjoy and get in a routine.”

Gabby radiates positivity, but she’s had her struggles, too. At 19, she tragically lost her 15-year-old brother Daniel, who died of the heart condition hypertrophic cardiomyopathy while playing football with their dad in the back garden.

“Grief blindsides you,” she says. “You think everything’s OK and then you’ll just have a moment. Last week, a friend of my son’s came over. He had lost his sister in almost the same circumstances as me.

“He’s 19 and she was 16. I’d met him when they started playing rugby together, and I said: ‘Do you have siblings?’. He paused and said ‘I’ve got three, but one died.’

“It was only nine months ago, and when he finished describing her, I said: ‘I’m so pleased you said you had three and you didn’t feel like you had to deny her existence.’

“Then I told him why and how brave that was. I was telling my mum afterwards and I burst into tears.

“It’s over 30 years since my brother died, but when you lose somebody you have immediate sadness, and then it can just throw you again any time. Often I can talk really matter of factly, but other times…

“For the first few months after [Daniel] died, I went into this feeling of: ‘That was a really s**t, unfair thing to happen and life could just change in a heartbeat’.

“I could have thought: ‘Life is rubbish and I’m going to sit on my arse for the rest of it.’ But I went into this ‘living for two’ mindset.

“I later spoke to therapists and found a healthier way to honour him, which is to be motivated and driven, but in a way that’s not so full-on.

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“His presence never goes away. Everybody’s on a different journey in grief and they take different routes, but I think it’s positive to keep the memory alive.”

Away from sport, Gabby is kept busy with her popular The Midpoint podcast, which has spawned her new book, The Midpoint Plan, about how to overcome the challenges of midlife and thrive.

“I started it four years ago, because I wanted to learn more about it,” she says. “I get to speak to so many more women. Before, it was mainly men who would want to talk to me about sport.”

All things considered, it’s fair to say Gabby has midlife totally nailed.

• Watch the Paris Olympic Games live on the BBC and iPlayer, July 26-August 11. Gabby presents from 6 pm each evening.

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