Liz McColgan

Biographical information

RolesCompeted in Olympic Games
SexFemale
Full nameElizabeth "Liz"•McColgan (Lynch-, -Nuttall)
Used nameLiz•McColgan
Born24 May 1964 in Dundee, Scotland (GBR)
Measurements170 cm / 45 kg
AffiliationsDundee Hawks, Dundee (GBR)
NOC Great Britain
Medals OG
Gold 0
Silver 1
Bronze 0
Total 1

Biography

Liz McColgan’s first major victory came in early 1986 when, representing the University of Alabama, she won the NCAA indoor mile championship. Later that year she became an instant hero in her native Scotland by winning the host nation’s only track and field gold of the 1986 Edinburgh Commonwealth Games. She regularly ran at distances between 800 metres and the marathon but it was over the longer distances that she excelled and it was only the sprint finish of Olga Bondarenko that denied her the Olympic 10K title at the Seoul Olympics.

After winning the Commonwealth Games 10,000 title in early 1990 McColgan missed most of the year to have her first child but then made a swift and successful comeback in 1991. Within five months of the birth of daughter Eilish she won the bronze medal at the World Cross-Country Championship and then dominated distance running from the rest of the year. She ran away from the field to win the World Championship 10,000 m and then, in November, won the New York Marathon with a record time for a début marathon.

The Olympic year of 1992 was a comparative disappointment as she placed only fifth in the Olympic 10 km but she did have the satisfaction of winning both the World Half-Marathon Championships and the Tokyo Marathon. Injury put her out of the sport for nearly two years but she returned to win the London Marathon in spring 1996 and to compete at her third Olympic Games in Atlanta.

McColgan placed second at the next two London Marathons but injuries were beginning to blight her career and she retired from the sport in 2001 after failing to recover from a series of stress fractures. She turned to coaching and owned a chain of fitness centres but could not keep away from running and made a comeback in 2004 to win the Scottish cross-country title. Liz was married to steeplechaser Peter McColgan from 1987 to 2011 but the pair split acrimoniously in 2011. She was sent for trial on charges of assault on her husband but was found not guilty of the accusations. Their daughter, Eilish, represented Great Britain at the 2011 European Team Championships at the 3,000 steeplechase. McColgan was voted Britain’s Sports Personality of the year in 1991.

Personal Bests: 10000 – 30:57.07 (1991); Mar – 2-26:52 (1997).

Results

Games Discipline (Sport) / Event NOC / Team Pos Medal As
1988 Summer Olympics Athletics GBR Liz McColgan
10,000 metres, Women (Olympic) 2 Silver
1992 Summer Olympics Athletics GBR Liz McColgan
10,000 metres, Women (Olympic) 5
1996 Summer Olympics Athletics GBR Liz McColgan
Marathon, Women (Olympic) 16

Olympic family relations

Special Notes