Team GB is saddened to hear of the death of Olympic champion Mary Rand.
Rand made history at the Tokyo 1964 Olympics, where she became the first British woman to win an Olympic gold medal in athletics and to win three medals at one Games.
Rand broke the world record as she won long jump gold, alongside pentathlon silver and bronze in the 4x100m relay, instantly becoming one of Britain's most iconic Olympians.
She was the only British woman to win three medals at one Games until 2024, when Emma Finucane matched her feat and joined one of the most exclusive clubs in British sport.
Her efforts paved the way for many other female athletes, including roommate Ann Packer, who went on to win 800m gold in a world record time.
“If you talk to Ann Packer, she will say, ‘Mary came back and she’d won a gold and it inspired everybody’. They all thought, ‘If Mary can do it, we can do it’,” Rand reflected.
She was named BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 1964 and and awarded an MBE in 1965 as she became one of the true sporting stars of the 1960s.
Her feats earned her widespread attention, including the offer of a date from Mick Jagger and invitations to act in James Bond films.
Rand made her Olympic debut at Rome 1960, where she set a British record in the long jump but missed out on a medal.
She won two European bronze medals two years later before becoming Olympic champion in 1964.
Packer later added: "Mary was the most gifted athlete I ever saw. She was as good as athletes get, there has never been anything like her since. And I don't believe there ever will."
Sportsbeat 2026