Despite the health problems caused by smoking cigarettes, many are surprised to learn just how many female athletes enjoyed a puff (or 50).
9 Female Athletes Who Smoked Cigarettes:
- Anna Kournikova: Tennis
- Hestrie Cloete: High jumping
- Shirley Strong: Hurdling
- Meghan Agosta: Ice hockey
- Ronda Rousey: Wrestler
- Lily Parr: Soccer
- Rosie Casals: Tennis
- Shannon Courtenay: Boxing
- Jane Bartkowicz: Tennis
Anna Kournikova
While she certainly isn’t the best female tennis player the world has known, Anna Kournikova turned heads due to her stunning looks, becoming one of the most-searched terms on Google at the height of her fame.
But she wasn’t just gorgeous — she was a smoker, too.
Unlike other athletes, Kournikova was quick to admit to enjoying a puff, stating, “smoking is my bad habit, but I don’t do it too much.”
Hestrie Cloete
The esteemed high jumper, Hestrie Cloete, took up smoking as a teenager. And she smoked a lot. However, she quickly found her pack-a-day chain-smoking ritual was impairing her ability to run 400 or 800 meters. Thus, she switched to high jumping.
Cloete excelled at her sport, winning two World Championships and two Olympic medals. She famously described herself as “smoking fit” and told reporters in 2004 she’s never felt like quitting.
Shirley Strong
Shirley Strong won a gold medal during the Commonwealth Games in 1982 for hurdling and posed for her photo with a cigarette in hand. Unsurprisingly for the era, everybody loved her.
Strong wasn’t the model athlete; she went out, laughed, smoked, and just had a genuinely good time.
She continued smoking and went on to win a silver medal at the Summer Olympics in 1984.
Meghan Agosta
Meghan Agosta, the Canadian ice hockey player, shared cigarettes and cigars with her team meats in celebration after winning the women’s gold medal at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics.
While there is no evidence of her smoking routinely throughout her time playing the sport, she certainly celebrated with puff-heavy gusto after this win.
Ronda Rousey
Ronda Rousey is an American professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist and judoka. She’s a well-known name among fighting sports fans, but many are unaware of her previous smoking habits.
Her autobiography details a time of her life that isn’t so celebratory but undoubtedly made her the sportswoman she is today. The Olympic medalist used to smoke, drink, and take drugs heavily, particularly after retiring from judo.
Lily Parr
Lily Parr is famed not only for her exceptional soccer skills but the part she played in the prohibition of women’s soccer until somewhat recent years. After all, the chain-smoking superstar embodied everything that made men at the time wince.
She swore like a sailor, grew up playing soccer with the boys, and smoked like a chimney. Parr was the women’s soccer poster girl, although she likely wouldn’t take too kindly to such a term.
Rosie Casals
Rosemary (Rosie) Casals was one of the best tennis doubles players in the world, winning 112 titles. Although, she proved her own on the singles court, boasting 800 career wins and 29 titles.
Reports state she would routinely grab cigarettes from fans after her matches, seemingly unaffected by the smoke’s impact during her games.
Shannon Courtenay
Shannon Courtenay says boxing is the reason she quit smoking and the “party animal” lifestyle. As soon as she stepped into London’s Finchley Amateur Boxing Club, she threw her cigarettes in the bin. She was a latecomer to the sport but was unbeaten in five professional competitions as of 2020.
Jane Bartkowicz
Jane “Peaches” Bartkowicz began her lauded tennis career at seven, going on to win the doubles title in 1966 and 1967. Her top status was achieved despite puffing on cigarettes throughout her career.