Marlene Elejarde
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Marlene Elejarde Díaz |
| Born | June 3, 1951 |
| Died | April 29, 1989 (aged 37) Havana, Cuba |
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) |
| Weight | 65 kg (143 lb) |
Medal record | |
Marlene Elejarde Díaz[a] (also spelled Elejalde,[1] June 3, 1951 – April 29, 1989) was a Cuban sprinter and hurdler. She made history at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City by helping Cuba secure a silver medal in the 4 × 100-meter relay. Elejarde achieved multi-medal dominance on the regional stage, notably sweeping three gold medals in the 100-meter hurdles, pentathlon, and the 4 × 100-meter relay at the 1970 Central American and Caribbean Games. Her career ended when she died in a car accident in April 1989 at the age of 37.
Early life and career
She was born on 3 June 1951 in Marianao, Ciudad de La Habana.[2]
Her first Olympics were in the 1968 Summer Olympics, where she won the silver medal at 43.3 seconds in the 4 × 100 meters relay with Fulgencia Romay, Violeta Quesada, and Miguelina Cobián, losing to the team from the United States of America in 42.8 seconds, consisting of Barbara Ferrell, Margaret Bailes, Mildred Netter, and Wyomia Tyus. In the third place, followed by the Soviet Union in 43.3 seconds, consisting of Lyudmila Zharkova, Galina Bukharina, Vera Popkova, and Lyudmila Samotesova.[3] At the event, she also competed in the 80 meters hurdles but only placed 4th in heat 2 of round 1 in three rounds[2]
At the 1970 Central American and Caribbean Games, she won three gold medals in all the sports he competed in. She won gold medals in the 100 m hurdles, the pentathlon, and the 4 × 100 meters relay at the Olympics alongside her teammates in Olympic. Quesada was replaced by Cristina Hechevarría with a time of 44.7 seconds, followed by Panama and Mexico.[4]
Death
She died in a car accident on 29 April 1989.[5]
International competitions
Personal bests
- 100 metres – 11.83 (1976)
- 80 metres hurdles – 10.99 (1968)
Notes
- ^ In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Elejarde and the second or maternal family name is Díaz.
References
- ^ Victor Joaquin Ortega (January 21, 2023). "Marlene Elejalde brilla desde su puesto en el Salón de la Fama" [Marlene Elejalde shines from her place in the Hall of Fame]. Radio COCO.
- ^ a b "Marlene Elejalde". Olympedia. Retrieved 30 May 2026.
- ^ "Mexico City 1968 Athletics 4x100m relay women Results". Olympics. Retrieved 30 May 2026.
- ^ XI JUEGOS DEPORTIVOS CENTROAMERICANOS Y DEL CARIBE PANAMA 1970 (PDF). 1970. pp. 344, 346, 355.
- ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Marlene Elejarde". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on December 3, 2016.
Full name: Marlene Elejarde Díaz
External links
- Marlene Elejarde at World Athletics
- Marlene Elejalde Diaz at Olympics.com
- Marlene Elejarde at Olympic.org (archived)
- Marlene Elejalde at Olympedia