Team GB name Hannah Mills and Mohamed Sbihi as joint flag bearers for Tokyo 2020 Olympics
Get to know the two athletes representing Team GB at the Opening Ceremony.
Olympic athletes Hannah Mills and Mohamed Sbihi have been announced as the first joint Team GB flag bearers, due to appear together at the Tokyo Olympics 2020 Opening Ceremony on Friday.
Historically, the flag bearer has been a role awarded to just one person but the International Olympic Committee amended this tradition in March of last year, allowing one male and one female Olympian to share the responsibility.
Mills will be the first female sailor to carry the Union Flag at the event, while Sbihi is the first person of the Muslim faith to take on the important role.
The duo was chosen by an Olympics 2020 Team GB panel and were hailed for upholding the core values of Team GB, those being "pride, responsibility, respect and unity".
Who is Team GB flag bearer Hannah Mills?
Hannah Mills is an Olympic sailor who took home a gold medal in the Women's 470 Class competition at Rio 2016, while also scooping up a silver at London 2012.
She has been awarded the title of world's number one in her class on two occasions, following wins at the World Championships in both Barcelona (2012) and Enoshina (2019).
Mills is 33 years old and was born in Cardiff.
"To be asked to carry the flag for Team GB at the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games is not a sentence I ever thought I'd say," she said in a statement.
"When Mark [England, Chef de Mission] told me I had been chosen, it was completely overwhelming and when I had a moment to think about what it meant I got pretty emotional.
Mills added: "It is the greatest honour in my career and I hope more than ever before that this Games can lift our country and deliver some incredible sporting moments to inspire the nation."
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Who is Team GB flag bearer Mohamed Sbihi?
Mohamed Sbihi is an Olympic rower for Team GB, who first represented the team at London 2012, where he won a bronze medal in the men's eight competition.
He built on this success at Rio 2016, when he took home a gold medal in the men's coxless four, safeguarding Team GB's dominance in that particular event.
Sbihi is 33 years old and was born in Kingston upon Thames.
He said in a statement: "To be the first person of Muslim faith to have this role is also a very proud moment. Hopefully this will help start the process of getting young Muslim kids involved in different kinds of sports, especially rowing.
"I have always maintained that I was just an average kid who got lucky and got selected to be a rower. And here I am 18 years later with the honour of being flag bearer."
Find out what's on today by checking out our guide to the Olympics on TV today.
Tokyo 2020 Olympics Opening Ceremony airs on BBC One at 12noon on Friday 23rd July. Check out more of our Sport coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what's on tonight.
Authors
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.
