Mary Peters (athlete) on:
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Mary Peters Track, Belfast (picture)
Northern Irish Athletics website, entry for Mary Peters
BBC biography
Dame Mary Peters' curriculum vitae
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peters, Mary 1939 births Living people People from Halewood Sportspeople from Ballymena Sportspeople from Belfast British female shot putters Female athletes from Northern Ireland Shot putters from Northern Ireland Pentathletes from Northern Ireland Olympic athletes of Great Britain Olympic gold medallists for Great Britain Athletes (track and field) at the 1964 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1968 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1972 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Northern Ireland Commonwealth Games silver medallists for Northern Ireland Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Athletes (track and field) at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1974 British Commonwealth Games Ladies Companion of the Garter Members of the Order of the Companions of Honour Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire Order of Saint John (chartered 1888) Deputy Lieutenants in Northern Ireland Sporting dames Lord-Lieutenants of Belfast BBC Sports Personality of the Year winners People educated at Portadown College Medalists at the 1972 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field)
Lady Mary Elizabeth Peters, (born 6 July 1939) is a
After Ballymena, the family moved to
: "Mary Peters is a Protestant and has won a medal for Britain. An attempt will be made on her life and it will be blamed on the IRA ... Her home will be going up in the near future." But Peters insisted she would return home to Belfast. She was greeted by fans and a band at the airport and paraded through the city streets, but was not allowed back in her flat for three months. Turning down jobs in the US and Australia, where her father lived, she insisted on remaining in Northern Irish
Northern Irish people is a demonym for all people born in Northern Ireland or people who are entitled to reside in Northern Ireland without any restriction on their period of residence. Most Northern Irish people either identify as Northern ...
former athlete, best known as a competitor in the pentathlon and shot put. Peters was named as Lady Companion of the Order of the Garter on 27 February 2019. She was installed in St. George's Chapel, the chapel of the Order, on Garter Day, 17 June.
Early life and education
Peters was born inHalewood
Halewood is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley in Merseyside, England. It lies near the city of Liverpool's southeastern boundary, bordered by the suburbs of Netherley, Hunt's Cross and Woolton.
Historically a part of Lancashire, ...
, Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly.
The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...
, but moved to Ballymena (and later Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...
) at age eleven when her father's job was relocated to Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
. She now lives in Derriaghy
Derriaghy, (; also known as Derryaghy), (), is a townland (of 538 acres) and civil parish in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, south-west of Belfast city centre. The townland is situated in the historic barony of Belfast Upper and the civil par ...
, within the Lisburn and Castlereagh
, settlement_type = District
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_type1 = Constituent country
, subdivision_type2 =
, subdivision_type3 =
, subdivision_type4 = Status
, subdivision_ ...
district, just outside Belfast.
As a teenager, her father encouraged her athletic career by building her home practice facilities as birthday gifts. She qualified as a teacher and worked while training.
Athletics career
After Ballymena, the family moved to Portadown
Portadown () is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town sits on the River Bann in the north of the county, about southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population of a ...
where she attended Portadown College
Portadown College is an academically selective, co-educational post-14 grammar school in Portadown, County Armagh, Northern Ireland.
History
Preparatory Department
Portadown College Preparatory Department was founded in 1921 as the Carlet ...
. The headmaster Donald Woodman and PE teacher Kenneth McClelland introduced her to athletics with Mr McClelland her first coach. She was head girl of the school in 1956.
In the 1972 Summer Olympics
The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ...
in Munich, Peters competing for Great Britain and Northern Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
and won the gold medal in the women's pentathlon. She had finished 4th in 1964
Events January
* January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved.
* January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarc ...
and 9th in 1968
The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide.
Events January–February
* January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.
* Janu ...
. To win the gold medal, she narrowly beat the local favourite, West Germany's Heide Rosendahl
Heidemarie Ecker-Rosendahl (; ; born 14 February 1947) is a retired German athlete who competed mainly in the pentathlon and long jump. On September 3, 1970, at the 1970 Summer Universiade in Turin, she set a world record in the long jump at 6.8 ...
, by 10 points, setting a world record score. After her victory, death threats were phoned into the BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
.
In 1972, Peters won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award. "Peters, a 33-year-old secretary from Belfast, won Britain's only athletics gold at the Munich Olympics. The pentathlon competition was decided on the final event, the 200m, and Peters claimed the title by one-tenth of a second."
She represented Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
at every Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...
between 1958 and 1974. In these games she won 2 gold medals for the pentathlon, plus a gold and silver medal for the shot put.
After athletics
Peters became a Trustee of TheOutward Bound
Outward Bound (OB) is an international network of outdoor education organizations that was founded in the United Kingdom by Lawrence Holt and Kurt Hahn in 1941. Today there are organizations, called schools, in over 35 countries which are att ...
Trust in May 2001 and is Vice-President of the Northern Ireland Outward Bound Association. She is also Patron of Springhill Hospice in Rochdale
Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...
, Greater Manchester.
The Mary Peters Trust
Peters established a charitable Sports Trust in 1975 (now known as the Mary Peters Trust) to support talented young sportsmen and women, both able-bodied and disabled, from across Northern Ireland in a financial and advisory capacity. The trust has made a large number of awards and has list of well known alumni includingGraeme McDowell
Graeme McDowell (born 30 July 1979) is a professional golfer from Northern Ireland. He has a total of eleven tournament victories on the European Tour, and four on the PGA Tour, including one major championship, the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Be ...
, Rory McIlroy, Jonathan Rea
Jonathan Rea (born 2 February 1987) is a Northern Irish professional motorcycle racer. He competes in the Superbike World Championship and is a six-time champion in the series.
He is the first to have won the Superbike World Championship six ...
, Darren Clarke
Darren Christopher Clarke, (born 14 August 1968) is a professional golfer from Northern Ireland who currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions and has previously played on the European Tour and PGA Tour. He has won 21 tournaments worldwide on a ...
, David Humphreys, Bethany Firth
Bethany Charlotte Firth, (born 14 February 1996) is a Northern Irish swimmer. Since 2014 she has competed for Great Britain; previously, Firth had represented Ireland. A six time Paralympic gold medalist, she has won gold in her specialist even ...
, Ryan Burnett, Carl Frampton
Carl Frampton (born 21 February 1987) is a former professional boxer from Northern Ireland who competed from 2009 to 2021. He is a former two-weight world champion, having held the WBA (Unified) and IBF super-bantamweight titles between 2014 a ...
, Paddy Barnes
Patrick Gerard Barnes (born 9 April 1987) is an Irish former boxer who competed as an amateur from 2005 to 2016 and as a professional from 2016 to 2019. As an amateur he competed in the light-flyweight division, representing Ireland at the 200 ...
, Michael Conlan, Kelly Gallagher, Michael McKillop
Michael Gerard McKillop (born 27 January 1990 in Ballymena, Northern Ireland) is an Irish middle distance runner. He competes in the T37 disability sport classification, as he has a mild form of cerebral palsy.
He won the 800m title at th ...
, Dr Janet Gray.
Honours
Peters was appointed aMember of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(MBE) for services to athletics in the 1973 New Year Honours
The New Year Honours 1973 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 1 January 1973 to celebra ...
. For services to sport, she was promoted in the same Order to Commander (CBE) in the 1990 Birthday Honours
The Birthday Honours 1990 for the Commonwealth realms were announced on 15 June 1990, to celebrate the Queen's Birthday of 1990.
The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour, and arranged firstly by the ...
and again to Dame Commander (DBE) in the 2000 Birthday Honours
The Queen's Birthday Honours were announced on 19 June 2000 to celebrate the Queen's Official Birthday in the United Kingdom,United Kingdom: Australia (12 June), New Zealand (13 June),New ZealandThe Queen's Birthday Honours 2000(13 June 2000), ''N ...
. In the 2015 New Year Honours, she was awarded as Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour
The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded on 4 June 1917 by King George V as a reward for outstanding achievements. Founded on the same date as the Order of the British Empire, it is sometimes ...
(CH), also for services to sport and the community in Northern Ireland, and in 2017, she was made a Dame of the Order of Saint John (DStJ). Peters was appointed a Lady Companion of the Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. It is the most senior order of knighthood in the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British honours system, outranked in ...
(LG) on 27 February 2019, and therefore granted the tile '' lady''.
Northern Ireland's premier athletics track, on the outskirts of Belfast, is named after her. A statue of her stands within it.
In April 2009 she was named the Lord Lieutenant of the City of Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
, retiring from the post in 2014 when she was succeeded by Fionnuala Jay-O'Boyle. Peters is a Freeman of the Cities of Lisburn and Belfast.
Arms
References
External links
Mary Peters Track, Belfast (picture)
Northern Irish Athletics website, entry for Mary Peters
BBC biography
Dame Mary Peters' curriculum vitae
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peters, Mary 1939 births Living people People from Halewood Sportspeople from Ballymena Sportspeople from Belfast British female shot putters Female athletes from Northern Ireland Shot putters from Northern Ireland Pentathletes from Northern Ireland Olympic athletes of Great Britain Olympic gold medallists for Great Britain Athletes (track and field) at the 1964 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1968 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1972 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Northern Ireland Commonwealth Games silver medallists for Northern Ireland Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Athletes (track and field) at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1974 British Commonwealth Games Ladies Companion of the Garter Members of the Order of the Companions of Honour Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire Order of Saint John (chartered 1888) Deputy Lieutenants in Northern Ireland Sporting dames Lord-Lieutenants of Belfast BBC Sports Personality of the Year winners People educated at Portadown College Medalists at the 1972 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field)