Glynis Nunn OAM

Order of Australia

The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...

(born 4 December 1960) is a former Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n heptathlete

Heptathlon

A heptathlon is a track and field athletics combined events contest made up of seven events. The name derives from the Greek hepta and athlon . A competitor in a heptathlon is referred to as a heptathlete.-Women's Heptathlon:...

, the first Olympic

Olympic Games

The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...

 champion in the event. Born Glynis Leanne Saunders in Toowoomba, Queensland

Toowoomba, Queensland

Toowoomba is a city in Southern Queensland, Australia. It is located west of Queensland's capital city, Brisbane. With an estimated district population of 128,600, Toowoomba is Australia's second largest inland city and its largest non-capital inland city...

, she began competing in athletics at age 9, when she was a student at Toowoomba South State School

Toowoomba South State School

Toowoomba South State School is a primary school located on the southern edge of the Toowoomba CBD in Queensland, Australia.Toowoomaba South is one of the oldest primary schools in Queensland. It is the oldest State School in Toowoomba proper . It was first opened in 1865, as school number 112...

.

She starred in several events, and was thus a natural competitor in the pentathlon

Women's pentathlon

The pentathlon is a sports contest made up of five events . The women's pentathlon was contested in the Olympics from 1964 until 1980, and it was replaced in the 1984 Games with the heptathlon. It had a different set of events than the ancient Olympic pentathlon...

 (which was replaced by the heptathlon in 1981). In 1978, she qualified for the Commonwealth Games

Commonwealth Games

The Commonwealth Games is an international, multi-sport event involving athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930 and takes place every four years....

, but couldn't compete because of an injury.

By the time of the next Commonwealth Games (1982), she had married Chris Nunn (a decathlete). In the first heptathlon competition at the Games, she upset the English favourite and took the title. At the inaugural World Championships

IAAF World Championships in Athletics

The World Championships in Athletics is an event organized by the International Association of Athletics Federations . Originally, it was organised every four years, but this changed in 1991, and it has since been organised biennially.-History:...

 a year later, she was placed 7th.

Because of the East Bloc boycott of the 1984 Summer Olympics

1984 Summer Olympics

The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...

, Nunn was one of the medal candidates for the Olympic title, too. The competition was incredibly close, with five athletes fighting for the medals. After the competition, there was confusion about who had won, but when the smoke cleared, Nunn had scored 6390 points, five more than runner-up Jackie Joyner-Kersee

Jackie Joyner-Kersee

Jacqueline "Jackie" Joyner-Kersee is a retired American athlete, ranked among the all-time greatest athletes in the women's heptathlon as well as in the women's long jump. She won three gold, one silver, and two bronze Olympic medals, in those four different events...

. In addition to her gold medal, Nunn was also placed fifth in the 100 m hurdles event, and seventh in the long jump

Long jump

The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength, and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a take off point...

.

After the Olympics, Nunn abandoned the heptathlon, and switched to hurdling. She was hampered by many injuries, but managed to win a bronze medal in the high hurdles event at the 1986 Commonwealth Games. She quit sports in 1990.