Mary Rand, first British Olympic women’s gold medallist, dies at age 86
Former Olympic long jump champion Mary Rand, the first British woman to win three medals at a single Olympic Games, has died at the age of 86.
Rand won gold in the long jump, silver in the pentathlon, and bronze in the 4×100 metres relay at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.
“Team GB is saddened to hear of the death of Olympic champion Mary Rand,” UK Athletics said in a statement on Friday. “From a young age, Rand was a trailblazer.
READ: Doha Diamond League meet hangs in balance amid West Asia conflict
“She was just 17 when she set her first British record in the pentathlon, making her major championship debut a few weeks later, when she won long jump silver at the Commonwealth Games in Cardiff.”
Rand set a long jump world record of 6.76 metres in Tokyo.
“Inspired by Rand’s opening-day gold … the squad went on to claim 12 medals in total,” UK Athletics said. “If you talk to Ann Packer (Rand’s roommate in Tokyo and Olympic champion in the 800m), she will say, ‘Mary came back and she’d won a gold, and it inspired everybody.'”
Published on Mar 28, 2026