JACKSON, MARJORIE

married name Marjorie Jackson Nelson born Sept. 13, 1931, Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, Australia Australian athlete who won two Olympic gold medals and tied or set 13 world records. During the early 1950s, when Australians dominated women's sprint events, Jackson was the most outstanding Australian sprinter. Jackson, known as the Lithgow Flash after her home town, was just 17 years old when she twice outran the great Dutch sprinter Fanny Blankers-Koen. At the age of 19 she won three gold medals at the 1950 British Empire Games (now the Commonwealth Games) in Auckland, N.Z. Competing at the 1952 Olympic Games in Helsinki, Fin., she tied the world record for the 100-metre sprint (11.5 sec), winning the gold medal. Jackson won another gold medal in the 200 metres, setting a world record, and competed for the Australian 4 100-metre relay team that set a world record (46.1 sec) in its first heat at Helsinki; the team led in the final race until a teammate accidentally knocked the baton from Jackson's hand. Jackson also won gold medals in the 100- and 220-metre runs at the 1954 Empire Games in Vancouver, B.C., Can.