Debbie Flintoff-King

Debra ("Debbie") Lee Flintoff-King, (OAM)[1] (born 20 April 1960) is a retired Australian athlete, and winner of the women's 400 m hurdles event at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

Debbie Flintoff-King
Personal information
Full nameDebra Lee Flintoff-King
Born (1960-04-20) 20 April 1960
Melbourne, Australia
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing  Australia
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1988 Seoul 400 m hurdles
World Championships
Silver medal – second place1987 Rome400 m hurdles
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 1982 Brisbane 400 m hurdles
Silver medal – second place 1982 Brisbane 4x400m relay
Gold medal – first place 1986 Edinburgh 400 m
Gold medal – first place 1986 Edinburgh 400 m hurdles
Silver medal – second place 1986 Edinburgh 4x400m relay
Silver medal – second place 1990 Auckland 400 m hurdles
Silver medal – second place 1990 Auckland 4x400m relay

Athletics career

Flintoff-King was born in Melbourne, the daughter of Richmond footballer Les Flintoff,[2] and made her international debut at the 1982 Brisbane Commonwealth Games, winning the 400m hurdles in a Commonwealth record time of 55.89.

Flintoff finished sixth in the inaugural event at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. In 1986, after setting Australian records at both the 400m flat and 400m hurdles during the year, she won both events at the 1986 Edinburgh Commonwealth Games. Flintoff participated in Prince Edward's charity television special The Grand Knockout Tournament in 1987.

She then won a silver medal at the 1987 World Championships and became the first Australian athlete to win an IAAF Grand Prix Final in that year, taking out her specialty 400m Hurdles event.

She won a gold medal at the 1988 Seoul Olympics despite having just received news of her sister, Noeline's death. Her Olympic record time of 53.17 seconds is the current Australian record.

Flintoff-King was one of the bearers of the Olympic Torch at the opening ceremony of the 2000 Sydney Olympics. She carried the Olympic Torch at the stadium, as one of the runners for the final segment, before the lighting of the Olympic Flame.

Married to her coach Phil King with three children (Amber King, Teisha King and Frazer King) Flintoff-King coached Australian sprinter Lauren Hewitt in the early 1990s and has mentored World Champion Jana Pittman.

Honours

In 1987, Flintoff-King received a Medal of the Order of Australia and was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame.[1][3] She received an Australian Sports Medal in 2000.[4]

References
  1. "Flintoff-King, Debra Lee, OAM". It's an Honour. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  2. Bartlett, Rhett (11 February 2019). "Flintoff's top Tiger legacy". Richmond Football Club.
  3. "Debbie Flintoff-King". Sport Australia Hall of Fame. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
  4. "Flintoff-King, Debbra: Australian Sports Medal". It's an Honour. Archived from the original on 1 January 2020. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
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