Raelene Boyle

Raelene Boyle MBE (1951 - ), Australian athlete, represented Australia at four Olympic Games as a sprinter, winning three silver medals. In 1998, Boyle was named one of 100 National Living Treasures by the National Trust of Australia.

Early life

Boyle was born on 24 June 1951, the daughter of Gilbert and Irene Boyle, in Coburg, a suburb of Melbourne. She was educated at Coburg High School in Melbourne's north.

Sporting career

After strong performances in the 1968 Australian Championships, and then the Olympic trials, Boyle was selected to represent Australia at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, at the age of 17. There she won a silver medal in the 200 metre sprint.

Boyle competed in the 1970 British Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, where she contributed to Australia's number one position on the medal tally with three gold medals, in the 100 and 200 metre sprints (both in world record time), and the 4x100 metre relay.

At the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Boyle collected two more silver medals, in the 100 metre and 200 metre sprints. In both races, she came second to East German Renate Stecher.

In 1974, at the Christchurch British Commonwealth Games, Boyle duplicated her results at the Edinburgh Games, winning three more gold medals in the same three events.

At the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, Boyle finished fourth in the final of the 100 metre sprint, but was disqualified from the 200 metre race for making two false starts. Unfortunately, a video replay later showed that she had not false started on her first start. However, Boyle did receive the honour of acting as the flag bearer for the Australian team, the first woman to do so.

Boyle was unable to replicate her previous Commonwealth success at the 1978 Commonwealth Games in Edmonton, winning only a silver medal in the 100 metre sprint.

Boyle did not attend the 1980 Olympics in Moscow, after a long dispute within Australian sporting circles over whether to join the USA led boycott of the Games, even though the Australian team eventually competed under the Olympic Flag.

Her final major competitive appearance was at the 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane, where she won gold in the 400 metre sprint, and silver in the 4x400 metre relay.

Through her successful career, Boyle won seven gold and two silver medals at the Commonwealth Games, in addition to her three silver medals at the Olympic Games. Some people consider Boyle unlucky not to have won Olympic gold, since some athletes who beat her were later revealed to be drug cheats.

Subsequent career

After retiring from competitive running, Boyle has remained involved with athletics, managing the Australian World Junior Athletics Team, serving as a member of the Victorian State Sports Council, and doing some television commentary.

Boyle completed a course in horticulture at the Victorian College of Agriculture and Horticulture, and worked for the Prahran City Council as a landscape gardener.

In 1996, Boyle was diagnosed with breast cancer, and underwent treatment. Subsequently, she became a campaigner for cancer awareness. In 1997, Boyle became a founding member and patron of the Sporting Chance Cancer Foundation, along with Mark Taylor, Reg Gasnier and Bob Skilton. She has supported other charities, including the Breast Cancer Network Australia. She also works as a community ambassador for the National Australia Bank.

In 2000, Boyle was also diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She once again underwent treatment, and again successfully fought her illness.

At the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Boyle was one of seven Australian female Olympians who carried the Olympic Flame on its final circuit around Stadium Australia before the lighting of the cauldron. Boyle accompanied and assisted fellow runner Betty Cuthbert, who has multiple sclerosis, and uses a wheelchair.

Boyle currently lives on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland.

Honours

On 15 June 1974, Boyle was appointed a Member of the British Empire (MBE). Also in 1974, the ABC selected Boyle as the Sportsperson of the Year. In 1988, Boyle was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame.

External links

Sporting Chance Cancer Foundation [1]

References

Australian Women's Archive Project – Raelene Boyle
Elite Sports Australia – Raelene Boyle
National Australia Bank - Ambassadors: Raelene Boyle
Graham Thomas – Biography of Raelene Boyle