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Marise ChamberlainMNZM

Chamberlain at the 1964 Olympics
Personal information
Born	(1935-12-05)5 December 1935 Christchurch, New Zealand
Died	5 November 2024(2024-11-05) (aged 88) Christchurch, New Zealand
Height	1.69 m (5 ft 7 in)
Weight	55 kg (121 lb)
Sport
Sport	Athletics
Event	800 m
Club	Canterbury
Achievements and titles
Personal best	800 m – 2:01.4 (1962)
Medal record Representing  New Zealand Olympic Games 1964 Tokyo 800 metres Commonwealth Games 1962 Perth 880 yards

Marise Ann Millicent Chamberlain, MNZM (5 December 1935 – 5 November 2024) was a New Zealand middle-distance runner. At the time of her death in 2024, she was the only New Zealand woman to have won an Olympic medal in track athletics (Lorraine Moller won a medal in the marathon). She set world records over 440 yards, 400 metres and 1 mile.

At the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Perth, Western Australia, she won a silver medal over 880 yards, behind Australian Dixie Willis. Two years later, at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo, she won the bronze medal behind Ann Packer (gold) and Maryvonne Dupureur (silver), the top five runners beating the old Olympic record time set by Dupureur in the semifinals.

At the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica Chamberlain stumbled just before the finish line when leading in the 880 yds final and missed out on a medal.

In the 2003 Queen's Birthday Honours, Chamberlain was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to athletics.

Chamberlain was inducted into the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame in 1995. She lived in the Christchurch suburb of South New Brighton all her life. After Earle Wells's death in 2021, she was the only surviving New Zealand medallist from the 1964 Summer Olympics.

Chamberlain died in Christchurch on 5 November 2024, at the age of 88.

Honors

Chamberlain Place, in the Hamilton suburb of Chartwell, is named in Chamberlain's honour.

References

1. ^ Marise Chamberlain. sports-reference.com
2. ^ Smith, Tony. "Meet Marise Chamberlain, New Zealand's only female track Olympic medallist, 60 years on". The Press. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
3. "Marise Chamberlain | New Zealand Olympic Committee". olympic.org.nz. 2011. Retrieved 24 October 2011.
4. Athletics at the 1964 Tokyo Summer Games: Women's 800 metres. sports-reference.com
5. "Queen's Birthday honours list 2003". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 2 June 2003. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
6. Marise Chamberlain mourned: NZ's only female track Olympic Games medallist dies, aged 88
7. "Honouring sportspeople". Waikato Times. 2 November 2012. p. 9.

External links

• Marise Chamberlain at IMDb
• Marise Chamberlain at the New Zealand Olympic Committee
• Page with Photo at Sporting Heroes

• 1935 births
• 2024 deaths
• Athletes (track and field) at the 1964 Summer Olympics
• 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
• New Zealand female middle-distance runners
• Olympic athletes for New Zealand
• Olympic bronze medalists for New Zealand
• Athletes from Christchurch
• Commonwealth Games silver medallists for New Zealand
• World record setters in athletics (track and field)
• Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics
• Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit
• Medalists at the 1964 Summer Olympics
• Olympic bronze medalists in athletics (track and field)
• Medallists at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games
• 20th-century New Zealand sportswomen