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Marlene Judith Mathews AO (later Willard; born 14 July 1934) is a retired Australian Olympic sprinter. She has been described as 'one of Australia's greatest and unluckiest' champions.
Marlene Mathews was selected for the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Vancouver, Canada, but injury precluded her competing in the sprint events. She won bronze medals in the 100 metres and the 200 metres at Melbourne 1956; each time behind Betty Cuthbert and Christa Stubnick (GER).
- July 14, 1934
Marlene Mathews ran with distinction in the golden era of Australian women’s sprinting throughout the 1950s and early 1960s. It was a time that, as well as Mathews, also produced Marjorie Jackson, Betty Cuthbert and Shirley Strickland (de la Hunty) as dominant figures of the track.
Born in Sydney, New South Wales, in 1934, Marlene Mathews was a prodigiously talented junior athlete who went on to become one of Australia's best, but most unlucky, sprinters. Developing as an athlete throughout the 1940s, she ran against such stars as Marjorie Jackson and Shirley Strickland.
Marlene Mathews avenged her Olympic defeats by triple Gold Medallist Betty Cuthbert when she ran away from her to take the Australian 100 yards title in world record time.
A week after the Olympics, Marlene was a member of the Australian 4x220yds world record breaking relay team, which defeated Great Britain and the USA in the Commonwealth v USA Meet in Sydney. In January, 1957 Marlene set a world record of 57.0 for 440yds at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
Marlene Mathews, who won bronze medals in both the 100 metres and 200 metres sprints at the 1956 Olympics, was a controversial omission from the women's 4 x 100 metres relay team.
