Colette Besson (born April 7, 1946 in Saint-Georges-de-Didonne (Charente-Maritime) Рdied August 9, 2005 in La Rochelle) was a former French athlete, the surprise winner of the 400 m at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. Athletics has been contested at every Summer Olympics since the birth of the modern Olympic movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics. ... The 1968 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad, were held in Mexico City in 1968. ... April 7 is the 97th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (98th in leap years). ... 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... Charente-Maritime is a d̩partement on the west coast of France named after the Charente River. ... August 9 is the 221st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (222nd in leap years), with 144 days remaining. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... La Rochelle is a city and commune of western France, and a seaport on the Atlantic Ocean (population 76,584 in 1999). ... A womens 400 metre hurdles race on a typical outdoor red rubber track. ... The 1968 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad, were held in Mexico City in 1968. ... (Spanish: Ciudad de M̩xico, M̩xico D.F. or simply M̩xico, pronounced IPA: ) is the capital city of the nation of Mexico. ...

Prior to the 1968 Olympics, Besson was virtually unknown, and the fact that she qualified for the 400 m could already be considered a surprise. In the final, Britain's Lillian Board - the favourite for the gold - was way ahead of the rest of the field with just 100 m to go. With an amazing last sprint, Besson then moved up from fifth place to beat Board on the finish line by a tenth of a second. Her winning time of 52.03 seconds was 1.8 seconds better than her personal best. Lillian Board (born December 13, 1948 in Durban, South Africa – died December 26, 1970 in Munich) was an athlete from Great Britain, who won the silver medal in the 400 metres at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, and two gold medals at the 1969 European Championships in Athletics...

The next year, Besson came close to winning another international title at the European Championships. In the 400 m final, she crossed the line almost level with her team mate Nicole Duclos, both in the world record time of 51.7. However, Duclos was awarded the victory after examination of the finish photo. Besson and Duclos also set a new world record in the 4x400m women's relay in the same championships. In the 4x400 women's relay final, Besson, who was anchoring the French 4 x 400 m relay team, passed the finish line at the same moment as Lillian Board. Again, photo finish evidence determined Besson had come second. A world record is the best performance in a certain discipline, usually a sports event. ... Photo finish from Greyhound racing taken using the movie camera method. ...

After 1969, Besson would not win any more international medals. She qualified for the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, but was eliminated in the preliminaries, although she took fourth place in the relay. She retired from athletics in 1977. The 1972 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad, were held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ... Munich: Frauenkirche and Town Hall steeple Munich (German: München, pronounced listen) is the capital of the German Federal State of Bavaria (German: Freistaat Bayern). ...

Besson died on Aug 9, 2005 of breast cancer [1], two years after being diagnosed with the disease. She was survived by her husband Jean-Pierre Nogues and their two daughters, Sandrine and Stéphanie. Breast cancer is cancer of breast tissue. ...

External links

• L'Équipe article dated 9 Aug 2005