An all-female panel of British sporting greats will appear at the University of Hertfordshire's Festival of Ideas next month.

The panel, including former CEO of UK Sport Dame Liz Nicholl, will discuss their careers and breaking new barriers in women's sport on Friday, May 17.

Dame Liz will be joined by fellow netballer Mel Mansfield as well as Team GB and England Lacrosse player Ella Cohen and Team GB Para Dressage rider Mari Durward-Akhurst.

Some of the panel have previously studied or taught at Herts.

Dame Liz Nicholl DBE has been the President of World Netball since 2019, and was re-elected for a second, four-year term in 2023.

Liz played netball for Wales at World Cup level and was also CEO of England Netball, championship director for the 1995 World Netball Championships and was most recently CEO of UK Sport between 2010 and 2019.

In 2000 she received an MBE for services to netball, an OBE in 2005 and a CBE in 2015 for her services to sport and a DBE for her services to netball and sport in general in 2023.

Herts-based international para dressage rider Mari Durward-Akhurst was part of the Team GB Para Dressage team that won silver at the 2019 European Championships.

She has won 11 national titles and four international titles, and is aiming for selection at the Paris 2024 Paralympics.

Mel Mansfield is former head coach at Wasps Netball, and is a performance coach and senior lecturer at the University of Hertfordshire.

She joined Wasps Netball for their inaugural season in 2016 as assistant coach, and was promoted to head coach in 2019 before stepping down in 2022.

The panel will be chaired by Fiona Scott, head of physical performance at the University of Hertfordshire.

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Vice-chancellor Professor Quintin McKellar said: "We are thrilled to announce some of Britain’s best sporting talent will be joining us at the Festival of Ideas.

"These women, some of whom have represented the country on the world stage, are an inspiration to us all.

"From working trackside at the Olympics to competing in World Cups, sporting stories from their boundary-pushing careers will be a hugely exciting listen."