Elizabeth Alyse Cuthbert, was an Australian athlete and a four-time Olympic champion. She was nicknamed Australia's "Golden Girl". During her career, she set world records for 60 metres, 100 yards, 200 metres, 220 yards and 440 yards. Cuthbert also contributed to Australian relay teams completing a win in the 4 × 100 metres, 4 × 110 yards, 4 × 200 metres and 4 × 220 yards. Cuthbert had a distinctive running style, with a high knee lift and mouth wide open. She was named in 1998 an Australian National Treasure and was inducted as a Legend in the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1994 and the Athletics Australia Hall of Fame in 2000.
Melvin Emery Patton was an American sprinter, who set the world record in the 100 yard dash of 9.2 seconds in 1948. He also set a 220 yd world record in 1949 on a straightaway of 20.2, breaking the record held by Jesse Owens.
Walter Thane Baker is an American former sprinter and winner of the gold medal in the 4x100 m relay at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, with a new world record of 39.5 seconds. At those Olympics Baker also won a silver medal in the 100-meter and a bronze in the 200-meter. At the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, he won a silver medal in the 200-meter.
Australia was the host nation for the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. However, due to Australian quarantine restrictions the equestrian events were held in Stockholm, Sweden. 294 competitors, 250 men and 44 women, took part in 140 events in 18 sports.
Marlene Judith Mathews AO is a retired Australian Olympic sprinter. She has been described as 'one of Australia's greatest and unluckiest' champions.
Pamela Kilborn-Ryan, AM, MBE is an Australian former athlete who set world records as a hurdler. For three years, she was ranked as the world's top woman hurdler.
John Thomas Devitt, AM is an Australian sprint freestyle swimmer of the 1950s and 1960s, who won a gold medal in the 100-metre freestyle at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. He won in controversial circumstances, being awarded the gold medal despite the timekeepers recording a slower time than the American silver medallist Lance Larson. He also claimed a gold medal at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, in the 4×200-metre freestyle relay.
Gary Arthur Chapman was an Australian freestyle swimmer of the 1950s who won a bronze medal in the 100-metre freestyle at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne. Although he had set a world record in the 220-yard freestyle, he was surprisingly omitted from the 4×200-metre freestyle relay team which won the gold medal.
Aeriwentha ("Mae") Faggs Starr was an American athlete who mainly competed in the sprint events. She graduated from Bayside High School, and then went to Tennessee State University to run under Hall of Fame coach Ed Temple.
David Hugh Segal was a British track and field athlete who competed in the sprints. He had best times of 9.5 seconds for the 100 yards and 21.0 seconds for the 220 yards. While competing in the United States he ran 20.4 seconds for the straight 220 yards.
Silas Edward Southern was an American sprinter and hurdler who won a silver medal in the 400 metres hurdles at 1956 Olympics. He won another silver medal in the 4 × 400 m relay at the 1959 Pan American Games.
Hector "Hec" Denis Hogan was an Australian athlete who competed mainly in the 100 yards and 100 metres sprint, where he was seven-times Australian 100 yards champion. He also competed in the 220 yards/200 metres, which he won twice in the Australian Championships, and the long jump which he won in 1954. He also competed in the triple jump.
Michael George Raymond Agostini was a Trinidadian track and field athlete. He was the first athlete from his country to win a gold medal at what is now known as the Commonwealth Games, when he won the 100 yards final in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on 31 July 1954.
Athletics is a popular sport in Australia, with around 34,000 athletes, officials and coaches currently registered with the national association.
Subedar Abdul Khaliq, also known as Parinda e Asia(Urdu for The Flying Bird of Asia), was a Pakistani sprinter from 8 Medium Regiment Artillery who won 36 international gold medals, 15 international silver medals, and 12 International bronze medals for Pakistan. He competed in the 100m, 200m, and 4 x 100 meters relay. He participated in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics and the 1960 Rome Olympics. He also participated in the 1954 Asian Games and the 1958 Asian Games. During the 1956 Indo-Pak Meet held in Delhi, Abdul Khaliq was first referred to as "The Flying Bird of Asia" by the Prime Minister of India of the time, Jawaharlal Nehru, who was reportedly captivated by his performance during the event.
Jim Golliday was an American sprinter, specializing in the 100 yards and 100 meters events. He was the United States 100 yards champion in 1951.
Kim Annette Robertson is a New Zealand former track and field sprinter. She represented New Zealand at three Commonwealth Games, one World Indoor Championship, three IAAF World Cups and three Pacific Conference Games. She was also selected in the 1980 Moscow Olympic team in the 400 meters but did not compete due to the NZ Government boycotting the event.
Kenneth Edward Dennis was an American track and field athlete. As a Masters sprinter he held the world record in the 100 metres in several age groups. Standing 5'3" the short Dennis was known for his soft-spoken nature, his greetings of "Hey man" or "Go man" and his blazing fast starts.
Marrion Douglass Roe was a New Zealand swimmer who represented her country at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games and the 1956 Summer Olympics.
Beverly Dawn Edith Weigel, with her first name commonly misspelled as Beverley and since her marriage known as Beverly Robertson, is a New Zealand athlete. Mainly active as a long jumper, but also as a sprinter, she represented her country at the 1956 Summer Olympics, the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, and the 1960 Summer Olympics.
