Born Lynne MacDougall in Glasgow, Scotland, she finished fourth in the 1500 metres at the 1983 European Junior Championships. In 1984, she won the AAA Indoor Championship 1500m title and finished second behind Zola Budd in the 1500m at the 1984 UK Championships. She went on to finish 11th in the 1500m final at that years Los Angeles Olympics. She then finished eighth in the 1500m final at the 1986 Commonwealth Games.