Tessa Sanderson later emigrated to Wolverhampton, England. Member of Wolverhampton & Bilston Athletic Club coached initially in the progressive days by John Moogan, and, subsequently by National Track and Field Coach Wilf Paish. Sanderson was the UK's leading javelin thrower from the mid-1970s, winning silver in the 1978 European championships and gold in the Commonwealth Games three times (1978, 1986, 1990), but was eclipsed during the 1980s by the up-and-coming Fatima Whitbread, with whom she shared a long-standing rivalry. When Sanderson won the gold medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics in the javelin, becoming the first British woman ever to win Olympic
Tessa Sanderson Sanderson Foundation and Academy. The charity is helping Sanderson to work on a wider basis to help other youngsters who are disabled and non disabled achieve their goals and creating a pathway and more opportunities not just in Newham but the wider areas of London and with a vision of a national roll out. In April 2009 Sanderson again because of her work in the community made history again by organising the first 10K road run to run through the Olympic Park offering the community and other visitors to Newham the Host Borough of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic