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| Event type

4 x 100 metres Relay, Women

Date7 – 8 September 1960
StatusOlympic
LocationStadio Olimpico, Roma
Participants40 from 10 countries

The 100 metre final had six finalists from six different nations, so no team could be considered dominant. But the United States had Wilma Rudolph, who had won the 100 and 200 gold medals quite easily. The entire US team was represented by runners from Tennessee State University, nicknamed the Tigerbelles. After three legs, the Germans were leading the American team, with Rudolph receiving the baton two metres behind. But she cruised past German anchor Jutta Heine to give the US a win by three metres, with Rudolph winning her third gold medal. Rudolph had received the baton from Pearl Jones, who had also won a gold medal in the 1952 4x100 relay, when she was only 15 years old. Germany’s third leg was run by Brunhilde Hendrix whose mother, Marie Dollinger, had run the third leg for Germany in 1936, when she had Ilse Dörffeldt botched the exchange, Dörffeldt dropping the baton. Hendrix’s father had also run in an Olympic relay, with Fritz Hendrix running for Germany in 1932 in the 4x1.

PosNrTeamNOCR1Final
1United StatesUSA44.4 (1 h2)44.5 (1)Gold
Martha HudsonLucinda WilliamsBarbara JonesWilma RudolphErnestine Pollards (DNS)Willye White (DNS)
2Unified Team of GermanyGER45.8 (2 h1)44.8 (2)Silver
Martha LangbeinAnni BiechlBrunhilde HendrixJutta HeineBärbel Mayer (DNS)Hannelore Raepke (DNS)
3PolandPOL45.3 (3 h2)45.0 (3)Bronze
Teresa WieczorekBarbara JaniszewskaCelina JesionowskaHalina RichterMaria Chojnacka (DNS)Maria Bibro (DNS)
4Soviet UnionURS45.0 (2 h2)45.2 (4)
Vera KrepkinaValentina MaslovskayaMariya ItkinaIrina PressLyudmila Motina (DNS)Lyudmila Ignatyeva (DNS)
5ItalyITA46.6 (3 h1)45.6 (5)
Letizia BertoniSandra ValentiPiera TizzoniGiuseppina LeoneDanilla Costa (DNS)Donata Govoni (DNS)
AC r2/2Great BritainGBR45.8 (1 h1)– (DNF)
Carole QuintonDorothy HymanJenny SmartMary BignalJean Hiscock (DNS)Elizabeth Jenner (DNS)
4 h1 r1/2HungaryHUN47.3 (4 h1)
Erzsébet HeldtMária BácskaiAntónia MunkácsiIldikó Jónás
4 h2 r1/2PanamaPAN46.5 (4 h2)
Silvia HunteCarlota GoodenLorraine DunnJean Holmes
5 h1 r1/2CanadaCAN47.9 (5 h1)
Nancy LewingtonSally McCallumValerie JeromeEleanor Haslam
AC h2 r1/2AustraliaAUS[47.5] (DQ h2)
Marlene Mathews-WillardNorma ThrowerNorma Croker-FlemingPat DugganGloria Cooke-Wigney (DNS)Betty Cuthbert (DNS)

Round One (7 September 1960 — 15:20)

Top three in each heat advanced to the final.

Heat One

PosNrTeamNOCTime (H)Time (A)
1Great BritainGBR45.845.92Q
Carole QuintonDorothy HymanJenny SmartMary Bignal
2Unified Team of GermanyGER45.845.96Q
Martha LangbeinAnni BiechlBrunhilde HendrixJutta Heine
3ItalyITA46.646.76Q
Letizia BertoniSandra ValentiPiera TizzoniGiuseppina Leone
4HungaryHUN47.347.54
Erzsébet HeldtMária BácskaiAntónia MunkácsiIldikó Jónás
5CanadaCAN47.948.05
Nancy LewingtonSally McCallumValerie JeromeEleanor Haslam

Heat Two

PosNrTeamNOCTime (H)Time (A)
1United StatesUSA44.444.50QWR
Martha HudsonLucinda WilliamsBarbara JonesWilma Rudolph
2Soviet UnionURS45.045.15Q
Vera KrepkinaValentina MaslovskayaMariya ItkinaIrina Press
3PolandPOL45.345.40Q
Teresa WieczorekBarbara JaniszewskaCelina JesionowskaHalina Richter
4PanamaPAN46.546.66
Silvia HunteCarlota GoodenLorraine DunnJean Holmes
DQAustraliaAUS[47.5][47.59]
Marlene Mathews-WillardNorma ThrowerNorma Croker-FlemingPat Duggan

Final (8 September 1960 — 15:20)

PosNrTeamNOCTime (H)Time (A)
1United StatesUSA44.544.72
Martha HudsonLucinda WilliamsBarbara JonesWilma Rudolph
2Unified Team of GermanyGER44.845.00
Martha LangbeinAnni BiechlBrunhilde HendrixJutta Heine
3PolandPOL45.045.19
Teresa WieczorekBarbara JaniszewskaCelina JesionowskaHalina Richter
4Soviet UnionURS45.245.39
Vera KrepkinaValentina MaslovskayaMariya ItkinaIrina Press
5ItalyITA45.645.80
Letizia BertoniSandra ValentiPiera TizzoniGiuseppina Leone
DNFGreat BritainGBR
Carole QuintonDorothy HymanJenny SmartMary Bignal