Anne Rosemary Smith (31August 19419November 1993) was a sprinter and middle distance runner, who specialised in the

1500 metres The 1500 metres or 1500-metre run is the foremost middle distance track event in athletics. The distance has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 and the World Championships in Athletics since 1983. It is equivalent to 1.5 kilomet ...

and

mile The mile, sometimes the international mile or statute mile to distinguish it from other miles, is a imperial unit, British imperial unit and United States customary unit of length; both are based on the older English unit of Unit of length, le ...

events. She represented Great Britain and Northern Ireland at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games. In 1967, Smith broke two world records in one race, running 4:17.3 for the 1500 metres and 4:37.0 for the mile. These were the first 1500 m and mile world records to be ratified by the

IAAF World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation and International Association of Athletics Federations and formerly abbreviated as the IAAF, is the international sports governing body, governing body for the sport ...

Biography

Smith was born in Amersham, England. She was coached by Frank Mitchell and

Gordon Pirie Douglas Alistair Gordon Pirie (10 February 1931 – 7 December 1991) was an English long-distance runner. He competed in the 5000 m and 10,000 m events at the 1952, 1956 and 1960 Olympics and won a silver medal in the 5000 m in 1956, placing fou ...

, Pirie had won silver in the 5000m at the Olympics in Melbourne in 1956 but Anne Smith's preferred distance, 1500m, did not become part of the Olympic Games programme for women until 1972. She had begun running as a 17-year-old and finished third behind Phyllis Perkins in the 880 yards event at the 1963 WAAA Championships. Smith then became the national 880 yards champion after winning the British

WAAA Championships The WAAA Championships was an annual track and field competition organised by the Women's Amateur Athletic Association (WAAA) in England. It was the foremost domestic athletics event for women during its lifetime. Since 1880, the Amateur Athl ...

title at the 1964 WAAA Championships and would win three more times in 1965, 1966 and 1967. At the 1964 Olympic Games in

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, she reached the final of the 800 metres (women were not permitted to run any distance longer than 800 m at the time). She set a British record of 2:04.8 in the semi-final. In the final, she finished eighth in 2:05.1, the race was won by her teammate

Ann Packer Ann Elizabeth Packer MBE (born 8 March 1942) is an English former sprinter, hurdler and long jumper. She won a gold medal in the 800 metres and a silver in the 400 metres at the 1964 Summer Olympics. Biography In 1959 Packer won the E ...

who recorded a world record of 2:01.1, second was France's

Maryvonne Dupureur Maryvonne Samson Dupureur (24 May 1937 – 7 January 2008) was a French middle-distance runner. Competing in the 800 m event she won silver medals at the 1964 Olympics and 1967 European Indoor Games; she also took part in the 1960 and 1968 Olym ...

(2:01.9) and third was Marise Chamberlain of New Zealand (2:02.8). In 1966, she won a bronze medal for

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in the 880 yards at the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games is a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations, which consists mostly, but not exclusively, of territories of the former British Empire. The event was first held in 1930 ...

in Kingston, she ran 2:05.0. The winner was

Abby Hoffman Abigail Golda Hoffman, (born February 11, 1947) is a Canadian former track and field athlete. Hockey Hoffman is Jewish, and was born in Toronto. She learned to skate when she was three. In the mid-1950s when she was nine, she wanted to play h ...

of Canada (2:04.2), with Australia's Judy Pollock second (2:04.5). Having set a British women’s mile record of 4:44.2 in 1966, Smith set a world record for the mile in May 1967, improving Marise Chamberlain's four-and-a-half-year-old mark of 4:41.4, when she ran 4:39.2 to win the Surrey Championship at Wimbledon Park on 13 May, also setting a British record of 4:21.0 for the 1500 metres en route. On 3 June 1967, in Chiswick, London, Smith broke two world records in one race, these times of 4:17.3 (1500m) and 4:37.0 (mile) were the first records to be officially ratified by the

. Smith worked as a PE teacher at Sacred Heart High School, Hammersmith,

Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls Haberdashers' Girls' School is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private day school in Elstree, Hertfordshire. It is often referred to as "Habs" (or "Habs Girls" to distinguish it from the neighbouring Haberdashers' Boys' School). The sch ...

, and Baradene College in

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

. She died in London on 9 November 1993, aged 52, following a brain haemorrhage.

Achievements

International Championships: 1964: 8th 800 m Olympics 1966: 3rd 880y Commonwealth Games 1968: 4th International CC 1971: 45th International CC (for New Zealand) UK Internationals: 12 (1963-6) National Championships: Won WAAA 880y 1964-7. Personal bests: 440y 56.0 (1967), 800m 2:03.2 (1966), 1500m 4:17.3 (1967), mile 4:37.0 (1967).

References

British Olympic Association Biog
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Anne Rosemary 1941 births 1993 deaths Athletes (track and field) at the 1964 Summer Olympics English female middle-distance runners British female middle-distance runners Olympic athletes for Great Britain Athletes (track and field) at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for England Sportspeople from Amersham Medallists at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games 20th-century English sportswomen Commonwealth Games bronze medallists in athletics