Akane

アカネ

Whitney (Akane in the original Japanese versions) holds the Plain Badge and lives in Goldenrod City. (The name Plain Badge is an English pun; Whitney resides on a farm reminiscent of the rural Midwest, and she trains Normal-type Pokémon.) She is an expert on Normal types. Her English name, Whitney, means white islands. It was likely chosen because "white" implies a lack of color, thus being plain and normal. Her Japanese name, Akane, can mean madder (a plant) or deep red, which may relate to her hair color. Whitney's signature Pokémon is a particularly tough Miltank.
In the anime
Whitney is the niece of a Miltank farmer. She has the unique ability to always find the correct path to her destination, provided she has no idea how to get there, and she is also known for her clumsiness. She leads Ash and his friends on a wild goose chase through Goldenrod City, ending at the Goldenrod Galleria, before Ash realizes she is the gym leader. They battle, but after Ash defeats her Nidorina and Clefairy, his Pokémon prove no match for Whitney's Miltank. After working briefly at Whitney's uncle's farm and thwarting a Team Rocket scheme, he earns a rematch with Whitney, where Pikachu outmaneuvers and knocks out her Miltank.
In the manga
In Pokémon Adventures, Whitney is an actress and a good friend of DJ Mary (to whom she gave a Smeargle). She met Gold while performing at the Radio Tower in Goldenrod City, but they clashed and ended up competing in a bike race. According to Suicune, Whitney is not a strong Gym Leader, and she is one of two Johto Gym Leaders (along with Pryce) that Suicune does not challenge for the right to be its partner in the fight against the Mask of Ice. In the end, she was the first to realize that Pryce was the villain known as the Mask of Ice. Whitney has a Cleffa and Igglybuff who work together to stun and confuse enemies, setting them up for Miltank's attacks. At one point, she also had a particularly mischievous Smeargle, but she gave it away. She faces Misty at the Pokémon League and loses due to a Hyper Beam from Starmie.