What happened that day?
See historic events for any day of the year by entering the date below. Why not try your birthday?
Kiwi of the Week
Today in History
20 February
1954 Yvette Williams sets world long jump record
The jump that won Yvette Williams a gold medal at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics was only half an inch off the world record set by Francine ‘Fanny' Blankers-Koen of Holland. Like Williams, Blankers-Koen was a versatile athlete, competing successfully in the long jump, high jump and a range of track events.
Williams broke Blankers-Koen's long jump record two years after the Helsinki Olympics at an athletics meeting in Gisborne. Her world record of 20 feet 7 1/2 inches (6.29 m) stood for 18 months.
In 1999 Blankers-Koen was voted ‘Female Athlete of the Century' by the International Association of Athletics Federation. The sports writer Peter Heidenstrom rated Williams as his 'New Zealand Athlete of the Century'.
Image: Yvette Williams in mid-jump (Te Ara)
Internal links
This Week in History
