Blog: Ace

Olympic Greats - Mary Peters

Won Pentathlon gold at her final Olympic games in Munich after a magnificent struggle with the home favourite Heidi Rosendahl and Burglinde Pollak of the GDR.Coached by Buster McShane, Peters led after the first day of competition but she knew her opponents strongest events were yet to come. In the end it all came down to the last event and Peters needed the performance of her life in the 200m. She eventually finished 4th but her time was good enough to give her the world record for the event and the gold medal by ten points.She received the medal from  the Marquess of Exeter, Lord Burghley then IOC Member in Great Britain.Her triumph had enthralled the television audience and she was named BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

A fund was set up which was used to build an athletics track in Belfast which eventually opened in 1976

She went on to win the 1974 Commonwealth Games in Christchurch, a win she dedicatedto Mc Shane who had been killed in a car crash.

 Although born in Lancashire she grew up in Ireland and competed in her first Pentathlon aged 15 and represented Northern Ireland at the Commonwealth Games in 1958. He first Olympic selection came in 1964 for Tokyo.

After her retirement she became a member of the Sports Council and managed the Great Britain Athletics team for five years

by Ace on 13:57 on 14th July 2008