Aussie Betty Cuthbert dead at 79: Olympic legend Golden Girl. Gold in 100m, 200m + 400m

AUSTRALIAN Olympic legend Betty Cuthbert has died aged 79 after a long battle with multiple sclerosis.

As an 18-year-old, Cuthbert was one of the stars of the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, winning three gold medals in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay.

She set an Olympic record of 11.4 seconds in the 100m and ran the anchor leg as Australia broke the world record in the relay. She set an astonishing nine world records in her career, four of which came in 1958.

After injury prevented her from adding to her medal tally in Rome four years later she retired, but came back to the sport to add the 400m crown in Tokyo in 1964.

She is still the only Olympian — male or female — to have won gold in the 100m, 200m and 400m and only Ian Thorpe (five) has won more gold for Australia.

Source: Betty Cuthbert dead at 79: Australian Olympic legend was our Golden Girl