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Kiwi of the Week

Bernard Freyberg

A First World War hero and commander of the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force, Bernard Freyberg was British-born but New Zealand-raised. He proved to be a charismatic and popular military leader who would later serve a term as Governor-General

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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)