Pam Kilborn-Ryan is one of Australia's
greatest ever athletes. She still holds the national record for 100m
Hurdles with a time of 12.93 set in 1972.
Pam Kilborn arrived on the scene in
the late 1950s, competing in Victorian interclub events. Though she
did not have immediate success, she was chosen to represent the state
in the 1960 Australian Championships.
Keen to make the Rome Olympic team, Kilborn was unlucky to suffer
illness during the nationals and only managed to finish third in the
80m Hurdles final behind world record holder Norma Thrower and Olympic
finalist Gloria Cooke. Kilborn was so sick after the hurdles final
that the placegetters had to help her stand on the medal dais.
She starred in the 1962 Commonwealth Games trials and was chosen for
both hurdles and Long Jump events. She won both these titles and for
the next ten years was considered one of the world's best athletes.
She came from a strong squad, training alongside Judy Amoore-Pollock,
coached by Henri Schubert.
In 1963 Kilborn became the first woman to win three individual
national titles in the same year when she took out the Hurdles, Long
Jump and Pentathlon. She also shared in the Victorian 4x110y relay
team's win. Between 1962 and 1972 Kilborn won a record sixteen
individual titles and shared in seven relay championships.
In 1964 she won a bronze medal in the Olympic Games in a blanket
finish where she was just pipped. She had the consolation of setting a
new world record in the event, just after the Games. World record
times continued in the 80m Hurdles and Kilborn began to improve her
performances in other events such as the sprints.
Pam defended her Commonwealth Games hurdles title in 1966 and also won
Gold in the relay. She was considered the favourite for the 1968
Mexico City Olympic Games, even though her world record had been
broken by a Russian athlete. In Mexico, she was troubled by injuries
and upset by her country-woman, Maureen Caird, in the 80m Hurdles
final.
Mexico was not a lucky games for
Kilborn. She had been training with the Australian 4x100m relay squad
and the team was considered a strong medal favourite. Just prior
to the start of the Games, it was discovered that officials had
neglected to include her name on the entry form and another athlete
had to replace her in the second leg. As such, the relay practice was
all in vain and the team, without Kilborn, eventually finished fifth
in the final.
After her 'failure' in Mexico, Kilborn decided not to retire and went
on to defend her Commonwealth Hurdles, achieving a record third
consecutive Gold medal. This event was now run over the new 100m
distance, although Kilborn had been experimenting with the 100m
Hurdles distance since as early as 1962. She 'defended' her hurdles
title in fine style, comfortably beating her Olympic nemesis, Maureen
Caird.
Her Commonwealth Games achievements
had earlier been recognised in the opening ceremony of the Edinburgh
Games, when she was selected to carry the Australian flag. She
was the first woman ever to be awarded this honour. She temporarily
retired after these Games, but the lure of Olympic Gold brought her
back to the track in 1971, when she competed as the now-married Mrs.
Ryan.
She seemed as fast as ever over the sprint hurdles and also set five
World Records (though one was not ratified) for the new event of 200m
Hurdles. Just before the Munich Olympic Games of 1972, she
appeared to be in top form, smashing the world record for 100m Hurdles
with a time of 12.5 seconds in Poland. Injury and a long season seemed
to take their toll in the Munich Games. Despite equalling her
electronic national record of 12.93 (which still stands in the year
2003) in the final of the 100m Hurdles, she could only finish fourth.
After this competition, Pam Kilborn-Ryan retired from international
athletics.
Pam Kilborn-Ryan Biography - COMING SOON!!
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