Pamela Kilborn-Ryan, AM,

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

(born 12 August 1939) is an Australian former athlete who set world records as a

hurdler Hurdling is the act of jumping over an obstacle at a high speed or in a sprint. In the early 19th century, hurdlers ran at and jumped over each hurdle (sometimes known as 'burgles'), landing on both feet and checking their forward motion. Today, ...

. For three years, she was ranked as the world's top woman hurdler. Kilborn was also an Olympic class sprinter,

Long Jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a gr ...

er and

pentathlete A pentathlon is a contest featuring five events. The name is derived from Greek: combining the words ''pente'' (five) and -''athlon'' (competition) ( gr, πένταθλον). The first pentathlon was documented in Ancient Greece and was part of t ...

, and loved shot put, she also won a total of 17 individual Australian Championships between 1962 and 1972.

Career

Early career

Kilborn was born on 12 August 1939 in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

. She began competing in athletics there during the late 1950s. She competed for the University High School team, under coach

Henri Schubert Henri is an Estonian, Finnish, French, German and Luxembourgish form of the masculine given name Henry. People with this given name ; French noblemen :'' See the 'List of rulers named Henry' for Kings of France named Henri.'' * Henri I de Montm ...

alongside her good friend

Judy Amoore Judith Florence Amoore-Pollock (born 25 June 1940) is an Australian former track running, runner. She was born in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, Victoria. At the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, she won a bronze medal in the first 400 metres ra ...

(later Pollock). In 1960 she attempted to gain selection for the

1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad ( it, Giochi della XVII Olimpiade) and commonly known as Rome 1960 ( it, Roma 1960), were an international multi-sport event held ...

but could only place third in the Australian Championships with only the first two athletes chosen. She was reputedly so ill during these Championships that she had to be assisted on the medal dais. During 1961 her performances at both hurdles and long jump had improved substantially and she was ranked No. 4 and No. 10 in the world, respectively, at the end of the year.

International career

At the

1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games The 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Perth, Australia, from 22 November to 1 December 1962. Athletic events were held at Perry Lakes Stadium in the suburb of Floreat and swimming events at Beatty Park in North Perth. The ...

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, Western Australia, Kilborn became one of the stars of the Games, upsetting world-record holder Betty Moore in the

80 m hurdles 80 metres hurdles is a distance in hurdling ran by women until 1972 in international competitions. Since the 1972 Summer Olympics, the event has been permanently replaced by the 100 metre hurdles. Masters athletics The distance, with different sp ...

race before winning the

long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a gr ...

contest ahead of two countrywomen Helen Frith (silver) and

Janet Knee Janet may refer to: Names * Janet (given name) * Janet (French singer) (1939–2011) Surname * Charles Janet (1849–1932), French engineer, inventor and biologist, known for the Left Step periodic table * Jules Janet (1861–1945), French psych ...

(bronze). Two years later, at the

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

in Tokyo, she won the bronze medal behind

Karin Balzer Karin Balzer (''née'' Richert; 5 June 1938 – 17 December 2019) was an East German hurdler who competed in the 80 m hurdles event at the 1960, 1964 and 1968 Olympics, and in the 100 m hurdles in 1972. She won a gold medal in 1964 and a bronz ...

(gold) and

Teresa Ciepły Teresa Barbara Ciepły (''née'' Wieczorek; 19 October 1937 – 8 March 2006) was a Polish sprinter and hurdler. She was a bronze Olympic medalist in the 4×100 metre relay at the 1960 Summer Olympics. Two years later she won gold medals i ...

(silver) after having equalled the Olympic record in the semi-final. Soon after the Games, on 5 October 1964, she equalled the World Record for 80 m Hurdles, running 10.5 in Tokyo. On 6 February 1965 in

, she bettered her record with a 10.4 time. At the 1966 Commonwealth Games in

Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley Inter ...

she won gold medals in 80 m hurdles and 4x110 yards relay. In 1967 she broke

Christine Perera Christine Bell née Perera (born 1949), is a female former athlete who competed for England. Athletics career She represented England and won a bronze medal in the 100 metres hurdles, at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, Scotla ...

's unofficial 100 m hurdles world record of 13.7 seconds and improved it twice up to 13.3 seconds in 1969. Having been undefeated since the 1964 Olympics, Kilborn was the favourite for the

1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport eve ...

in Mexico City. At the Games she was hampered by a shoulder injury and could not overcome her surprising teenage countrywoman

Maureen Caird Maureen Caird (born 29 September 1951) is an Australian former track athlete, who specialised in the sprint hurdles. At the 1968 Summer Olympics, she became the youngest-ever individual Olympic athletics champion at the time, at age 17, w ...

in the rain-affected final. She won silver in the 80 metre hurdles. In 1970 the international hurdling distance was extended to 100 metres and, competing at the

British 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 ...

, she beat Caird to take yet another gold medal. Her three successive golds was the most ever won by any athlete at the

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 ...

. Earlier in the Games she was chosen to carry the Australian standard in the Opening Ceremony; the first time a woman had been awarded this honour. After a brief retirement, she returned to the track for one last Olympic campaign in 1972. She set a World Record of 12.5 (12.93 automatic timing) shortly before the 1972 Olympics in Munich, but could only run fourth in the Olympic final.

Honours

Kilborn was made a Member 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 ...

(MBE) in the 1971 New Year Honours for services in sporting and international spheres,Australia list: and a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in 2008. She was inducted into the

Sport Australia Hall of Fame The Sport Australia Hall of Fame was established on 10 December 1985 to recognise the achievements of Australian sportsmen and sportswomen. The inaugural induction included 120 members with Sir Don Bradman as the first inductee and Dawn Fraser th ...

in 1985 and received a

Centenary Medal The Centenary Medal is an award which was created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the centenary of the Federation of Australia and to recognise "people who made a contribution to Australian society or go ...

in 2001.

Statistics

National Records
Kilborn set multiple Australian records in seven different events during her career: 80 metre hurdles, 100 metres hurdles, 200 metres hurdles, Long Jump, Pentathlon, 4 x 200 metres relay, and 4 x 220 yards relay. World Records Over 80 metres hurdles, Kilborn set two official world records in 1964 and 1965. In the 100 metres hurdles, she set one official world record at

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

on 28 June 1972. At 200 m hurdles, Kilborn-Ryan set four official world records between 1969 and 1971, with a best of 25.7. In team events, she set a world record for 4 x 220 yards relay of 1:35.8 in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

on 9 November 1969, teaming with

Raelene Boyle Raelene Ann Boyle (born 24 June 1951) is an Australian retired athlete, who represented Australia at three Olympic Games as a sprinter, winning three silver medals, and was named one of 100 National Living Treasures by the National Trust of ...

, Jenny Lamy and Marion Hoffman. Personal Bests World Rankings – Hurdles and Long Jump Australian Championships Record – prior to 1963 Championships were held every two years

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kilborn, Pam 1939 births Living people Sportswomen from Victoria (Australia) Athletes from Melbourne Australian female hurdlers Australian female sprinters Australian female long jumpers Olympic athletes of Australia Olympic silver medalists for Australia Olympic bronze medalists for Australia 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 Medalists at the 1964 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1968 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Australia Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics 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 World record setters in athletics (track and field) Sport Australia Hall of Fame inductees Australian Members of the Order of the British Empire Members of the Order of Australia Olympic silver medalists in athletics (track and field) Olympic bronze medalists in athletics (track and field) People educated at University High School, Melbourne