yvette williams

Personal details

Full Name:

Yvette Winifred Corlett

Lifetime:

1929–

Biography

Yvette Williams

The sports writer Peter Heidenstrom rated Yvette Williams as his 'New Zealand Athlete of the Century'. There is no doubt that she was one of our greatest-ever athletes - and probably the most versatile.

Events In History

20 February 1954

Yvette Williams sets world long jump record

Eighteen months after winning the long jump gold medal at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, Williams set a new world record of 20 feet 7 1/2 inches (6.29 m) at an athletics meeting in Gisborne. Read more...
23 July 1952

Yvette Williams leaps for gold at Helsinki

New Zealand's first female Olympic medallist, Yvette Williams (now Corlett) won gold in the long jump with an Olympic record leap of 6.24 m (20 feet 5 and 3/4 inches). Read more...