Olympic medal record
Competitor for  United Kingdom
Women's athletics
Silver	1964 Tokyo	400 m
Gold	1964 Tokyo	800 m

Ann Elizabeth Packer MBE (born 8 March 1942 in Moulsford, Oxfordshire, UK) is a former British sprinter, hurdler and long-jumper. She won a gold medal in the 800 metres at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... A womens 400m hurdles race on a typical outdoor red rubber track. ... The 1964 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, were held in 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. ... Athletics at the 1964 Summer Olympics was composed of 36 events, 24 for men and 12 for women. ... The 1964 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, were held in 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. ... Athletics at the 1964 Summer Olympics was composed of 36 events, 24 for men and 12 for women. ... Commanders Badge of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions, in order of seniority: Knight or Dame Grand Cross... is the 67th day of the year (68th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Moulsford is a village and civil parish in the English county of Oxfordshire (formerly Berkshire). ... Oxfordshire (abbreviated Oxon, from the Latinised form Oxonia) is a county in the South East of England, bordering on Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, and Warwickshire. ... Sprints are short running races in athletics. ... Hurdling In track and field athletics there are sprint hurdle races and long hurdle races. ... Long jumper at the GE Money Grand Prix in Helsinki, July 2005. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The 1964 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, were held in 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. ...

Ann Packer was a member of Reading Athletic Club when she was selected for the British team. She was in the 4 x 100 metres team that won silver medals in the 1962 Commonwealth Games and the 1962 European Championships. During a relay race, members of a team take turns swimming or running (usually with a baton) parts of a circuit or performing a certain action. ... The 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Perth, Australia. ...

Packer travelled to Tokyo in 1964 where she shared a room with long jump gold medallist Mary Rand. Packer was hoping to win her favourite event, the 400 metres, but was beaten into second place by Betty Cuthbert of Australia, despite setting a new European record (52.2sec). After winning a silver medal in the 400 metres Packer had no plans to run in the 800 metres and had a shopping trip planned until her fiancé, Robbie Brightwell finished fourth in the 400 metres. Disappointed for him, she turned to the 800 metres, an event which she had only raced in five times before. In her heat and semi-final Packer finished fifth and third, running 2:12.6 and 2:06.0 respectively, being beaten by Frenchwoman Maryvonne Dupureur clocking 2:04.5 and 2:04.5. Mary Rand (nee Bignal, born 14 February 1940) is a former British athlete. ... 400 m is a common track running event. ... Statue of Betty Cuthbert outside the Melbourne Cricket Ground Elizabeth (Betty) Cuthbert (born April 20, 1938 in Merrylands[1], New South Wales) is an Australian athlete, and a four-fold Olympic champion. ... Robbie Brightwell was born in India during 1939, as Robert Brightwell, the Brightwell family moved to England during 1946 He gained his athletic training at the then Loughborough College and went on to become a sportsmaster at a school in Surrey, England. ... Maryvonne Dupureur (born May 24, 1937) is a former athlete from France, who competed mainly in the 800 metres. ...

She thus started the final the slowest of the eight contestants, having raced at the distance only seven times before. Packer was sixth at 400 metres, lying behind Dupureur, she was third at 600 m and took the lead in the final straight, using her sprinting speed to take the gold. She broke the world record with a time of 2min 1.1sec ^[1].

After winning the gold medal, she announced her retirement at the age of 22 and so had one of the shortest athletics career of any Olympic gold medallist. It would be another forty years before another British woman, Kelly Holmes would win the 800 metres despite the event being very successful for Britain's men. Dame Kelly Holmes, DBE (born April 19, 1970) is a retired British middle-distance athlete. ...

Later in the same games Robbie Brightwell won a silver medal in the 4 x 400 m relay. They later married and had three sons, Gary, Ian and David, the latter two becoming footballers with Manchester City. She and Robbie were each awarded the MBE in 1965. Ian Brightwell (born April 9, 1968 in Lutterworth, Leicestershire) in an English footballer who is currently player-coach at Macclesfield Town, but is probably best remembered for his time at Manchester City. ... David John Brightwell (born January 7, 1971 in Lutterworth, England) is a former English professional footballer who played in defence for ten clubs. ... Manchester City Football Club is an English professional football club based in the city of Manchester. ... Commanders Badge of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions, in order of seniority: Knight or Dame Grand Cross...

Notes

1. ^ Times On Line biography

External links

• BBC Sport article
• SportingLife article on Anne Packer
• Photo of Ann Packer (left) with Mary Rand

This article is becoming very long. ... Karoline Lina Radke-Batschauer (October 18, 1903 РFebruary 14, 1983) was a German runner. ... Lyudmila Ivanovna Shevtsova (Russian: ) (born November 26, 1934) is a Soviet athlete who competed mainly in the 800 metres. ... Madeline Manning (Madeline Manning Mims) (born 11 January 1948 in Cleveland, Ohio) is a former American athlete. ... Hildegard Falck, n̩e Janze (born 8 June 1949 in Nettelrede) is a retired German athlete who competed mainly in the 800 metres. ... Tatyana Kazankina (born on December 17, 1951) was a Russian runner who set seven world records and won a total numer of three golden medals at the Olympic Games. ... Nadezhda Olizarenko (born 28 November 1953) is a retired athlete who competed mainly in the 800 metres. ... Doina Melinte (born December 27, 1956) is a retired Romanian athlete. ... Sigrun Wodars (born November 7, 1965) is a former East German middle distance athlete. ... Ellen Gezina Maria van Langen (born February 9, 1966) is a former Dutch middle distance runner Born in Oldenzaal, Van Langen has a degree in economics at the University of Amsterdam. ... Svetlana Alexandrovna Masterkova (born January 17, 1968) is a former Russian middle distance runner. ... Maria de Lurdes Mutola (born October 27, 1972 in Maputo) is an athlete from Mozambique who has specialised in the 800 m. ... Dame Kelly Holmes, DBE (born April 19, 1970) is a retired British middle-distance athlete. ...