Left in the dust: The first golden age of citizen travel to outer space
The first civilian in space was a Japanese newspaper reporter in 1990, Toyohiro Akiyama. Then, six months later, Helen Sharman, a distinguished British chemist won a radio contest, beating out more than 13,000 other British men and women. However, both have been denied inclusion in the commercial space tourism club.
Source: pressreleasepoint.com