Australian track legend, Betty Cuthbert, passed away at the age of 79. Known as the Golden Girl in Australia, the woman from Merrylands, New South Wales won gold in the 100-meter, 200-meter and 400-meter sprints, covering the 1956 Melbourne Olympics and the 1964 Olympics.

In fact, Cuthbert is the only athlete, male or female to ever win those three sprint finals in the Olympics. Her four gold medals as an Australian, including a 4×100 relay victory in her momentous Melbourne Games has been surpassed only by super swimmer Ian Thorpe’s five golds. Cuthbert had struggled with multiple sclerosis for decades, died on Sunday, August 6, 2017.

See my four-part series on Cuthbert’s fantastic career below:

• Australia’s Golden Girl Betty Cuthbert Part 1: Three Golds at the Melbourne Olympics and Three-Quarters the Way to History
• Australia’s Golden Girl Betty Cuthbert Part 2: Golden Girl Loses Her Luster, Shakes the Spotlight and Finds Herself
• Australia’s Golden Girl Betty Cuthbert Part 3: Golden Girl Takes Her Fourth and Most Meaningful Gold at the Tokyo Olympics
• Australia’s Golden Girl Betty Cuthbert Part 4: Living with MS