Raelene BOYLE

                                  Olympic Games 200m silver in 1968, aged 17.

Raelene Boyle was one of the best sprinters of her time, and arguably the best of them all, following subsequent revelations of widespread (and undetected) enhanced performance drug taking by eastern European athletes during the period of Boyle's career. Raelene was a 17 year-old schoolgirl when she competed at her first Olympic Games at Mexico City in 1968, but she showed maturity beyond her years when she finished a close fourth in the 100m final, missing bronze by only 0.01sec. Her disappointment was not helped by the officials who originally told Boyle she had won the bronze medal, and Raelene was understandably devastated when she learned of the official result. Undeterred, the young Australian responded magnificently two days later, when she won her heat of the 200m in a new Olympic record of 23.0sec.

Later that day, Raelene won the first semi-final, beating 100m gold-medallist Wyomia Tyus (USA) in the process. In her own words, Boyle at this stage was not merely thinking of winning a minor medal that she had been controversially denied in the 100m, but felt that she was a definite chance for the gold. In the final, held on 18 October, Boyle gave herself every chance to realise that dream, running a very strong first 100m around the curve. This burnt off all her opposition except Irena Szewinska (Poland) who powered away to win easily, with Boyle hanging on courageously to claim the silver medal in a time of 22.7sec. Raelene capped off an incredible week for a 17 year-old two days later, when she ran the third leg on the Australian 4 x 100m relay team which finished fifth in the final. (Ron Casey)

                                  Three Commonwealth Gold medals in 1970.

Following Raelene Boyle's sensational debut at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics Games as a 17 year-old, athletic fans were eager to see what further successes she could accomplish in the international arena. However, due to the expense and travel distance involved, it was virtually impossible in those days for young Australian amateur athletes without independent means to participate in international competition unless they were part of a team selected for a major international championship. Consequently, Raelene's 1969 athletic opportunities were limited to the domestic season. This, however, did not mean that she was devoid of good competition, as Australia boasted a good depth in its female sprinters at that time.

This was particularly evident on 9 November, when Boyle's name entered the world record books as a member of a national 4 x 220yds relay team which set a new mark of 1min 35.8sec on a grass track in Brisbane. In 1970 at Edinburgh, Boyle commenced what would eventually become an incredible record at the Commonwealth Games. Her first success came in the 100m final on 18 July, in which she won the gold medal from Alice Annum (Ghana) in 11.1sec. Four days later Raelene  competed in the 200m final, where she collected her second gold medal in a time of 22.7sec, again relegating Annum to second place. Finally, Boyle collected her third gold from three events when she anchored the Australian 4 x 100m relay team to a first-place finish.

The following year again saw Raelene restricted to competition at home, although this did not prevent her from registering some world-class performances. Her time of 11.1sec for 100m set at Sydney on 13 March, was only bettered during 1971 by Renate Stecher, who Raelene was destined to duel with at the following year's Munich Olympic Games. (Ron Casey)

                      Two more Olympic  Games silvers & four Commonwealth Golds.

Raelene Boyle burst onto the international athletics stage as a 17 year-old at the 1968 Olympics, winning a silver medal in the 200m and finishing fourth in the 100m. Her successful return to the Olympic arena in 1972 at Munich could have been even more triumphant if she hadn't encountered Renate Stecher (East Germany). Boyle  finished second behind Stecher in the 100m final held on 2 September, and then won another silver medal behind Stecher in the 200m final held five days later. At the Commonwealth Games in Christchurch in 1974 Boyle repeated the impressive feat she had achieved at the 1970 Games, winning both the individual 100m and 200m events, and adding a third gold medal when she anchored the Australian 4 x 100m relay team to victory.

In her third Olympics at Montreal in 1976, Raelene finished fourth in the 100m, and was considered a definite medal chance for the 200m, but was unfortunately disqualified (under questionable circumstances) for a false start in her semi-final. Plagued by Achilles tendon troubles at the 1978 Commonwealth Games in Edmonton, Raelene nevertheless won a silver medal in the 100m, but withdrew from the 200m after the heats. Boyle then stepped up to the 400m but withdrew from the Moscow Olympics, not in support of the USA-led boycott, but from personal disillusionment over the use of the Olympics as a political weapon. Raelene's final competition was the 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane, where, in an emotional farewell before a home crowd, she won the Commonwealth 400m title, as well as a silver medal in the 4 x 400m relay. (Ron Casey).