Meet the Goodwill Ambassadors

Debbie Ferguson

Sprinter Debbie Ferguson is an Olympic gold medallist whose talent has reaped a host of honours.

She took Olympic gold in the 4x100 metres relay, holds a silver in the same event and a bronze for the individual 200 metres. Other prizes include two further golds at the World Championships and three at the Commonwealth Games, where she was named Outstanding Female Athlete.

Ferguson’s own experiences in the Bahamas have provided her with an empathy for the less privileged.

“I spent my childhood in Nassau, where living conditions were not as good as they are nowadays,” she said. “We should not only treasure what we have now. We should also help others obtain what they should have."

Since her appointment as an FAO Goodwill Ambassador in 2002, Ferguson has visited FAO projects in the Bahamas and provided media interviews about hunger issues. She was also featured in a calendar produced by the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) which featured FAO’s logo, and which sought to raise awareness and understanding of hunger.