Margaritha Constantia "Mariette" Van Heerden (born 22 November 1952) is a Zimbabwean former discus thrower and

shot put The shot put is a track-and-field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical Ball (sports), ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. For men, the sport has been a part of the Olympic Games, modern Olympics since their 1896 Summer Olym ...

er.

Biography

Van Heerden was born in

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a self-governing British Crown colony in Southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally known as South ...

but grew up in South Africa and was the holder of South African records in shot put and discus throw as well as a multiple South African champion in both these events (1980 and 1981). She was awarded Springbok colours during the years of the international sports boycott of South Africa.Russouw, Johann
"History of the Olympics"
''The Medalist''. October 2012: p.9 Retrieved 4 December 2017 Van Heerden finished second behind

Angela Littlewood Angela Mary Littlewood (born 24 September 1949 in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire) is a female retired English shot putter. Biography Littlewood attended Clifton Hall Girls' Grammar School. She played at left inner for Sherwood Juniors hockey te ...

in the shot put and second behind

Meg Ritchie Margaret "Meg" Elizabeth Stone Ritchie (born 6 July 1952) is a retired Scottish discus thrower and Shot putter. She reached the Olympic finals at discus in Moscow 1980 (9th) and Los Angeles 1984 (5th). She also won the 1982 Commonwealth Games t ...

in the discus throw event at the British

1981 WAAA Championships The 1981 WAAA Championships sponsored by Sunsilk, were the national track and field championships for women in the United Kingdom. The event was held at the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre, London, from 24 to 25 July 1981. The Pentathlo ...

. Van Heerden competed in the discus at the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the ...

, representing Zimbabwe. She also represented Zimbabwe in the discus at the

1982 Commonwealth Games The 1982 Commonwealth Games were held in Brisbane, Australia, from 30 September to 9 October 1982. The Opening Ceremony was held at the QEII Stadium (named after Elizabeth II), in the Brisbane suburb of Nathan. The QEII Stadium was also the ...

, 1983 World Championships and

1985 African Championships in Athletics The 1985 African Championships in Athletics were held in Cairo, Egypt between 15 and 18 August. Medal summary Men's events Women's events Medal table See also *1985 in athletics (track and field) Notes External linksResults– GBR Athl ...

. Van Heerden also competed in the shot put at the

. Van Heerden is still the Zimbabwean record holder in women's shot put (15.58 metres, set on 20 January 1974) and women's discus (55.70 metres, set on 25 March 1984). Van Heerden moved back to South Africa after 1987 and is the mother of South African swimmer Katheryn Meaklim.

References

1952 births Living people South African female shot putters South African female discus throwers Athletes (track and field) at the 1984 Summer Olympics Zimbabwean female shot putters Zimbabwean female discus throwers Olympic athletes for Zimbabwe Athletes (track and field) at the 1982 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games competitors for Zimbabwe World Athletics Championships athletes for Zimbabwe Afrikaner people White Rhodesian people Rhodesian people of Dutch descent White Zimbabwean sportspeople Zimbabwean people of Dutch descent Zimbabwean emigrants to South Africa Place of birth missing (living people) {{Zimbabwe-athletics-bio-stub