Mary Rand was Great Britain's first female Olympic athletics champion. It's 44 years tomorrow since she won the long jump with a world record at the Tokyo Olympics to become the original "Golden Girl" of British athletics, and first woman from her sport to win the BBC sports personality award in 1964.

She had led the qualifiers and had been unbeaten for two years when she went to the 1960 Olympics in Rome, but succumbed to nerves in the final. Her qualifying jump, which was a British record, would have given her silver, but she finished ninth.

But there was no doubt in 1964. She broke the British and Olympic records with her first attempt, then improved them, and finally, on a rain-drenched runway and into the wind, smashed the world record with 6.76 metres. It lasted four years as world best and even now has been surpassed by only four UK athletes. No British woman has subsequently held the world record.

The charismatic blonde from Somerset also won silver in the pentathlon and bronze in the sprint relay - the match set at one Games. She won Commonwealth long-jump gold in 1966, but injury forced her out of the 1968 Olympics, and into retirement.

In the 1964 Olympic pentathlon she had surpassed the previous world best, but was beaten by the Soviet, Irina Press, about whose gender there had been speculation.

She and her sister, Tamara, disappeared as soon as gender-testing was introduced, so Rand may even have been denied a second gold. Press died four years ago, and the gender debate was never resolved.

There was no ambiguity about Mary's gender. She is still referred to by contemporary international athletes as: "a charismatic stunner". We'll spare their identities and elderly blushes. Suffice to say, she was lusted after by many team-mates, and Mick Jagger once described her as his dream date. But Mary Bignall met Commonwealth silver-medal sculler and Olympian Sydney Rand. Within three days they were engaged, and married within five weeks.

She had won a place at Millfield, and English schools titles, but when she struck up a friendship with a fellow-pupil, a Thai called Thiti Burakamkovit, there was uproar. They became engaged after Thiti left school, but the headmaster insisted the relationship should end. Mary's dad, Eric, was supportive, and said that though Millfield had given her a scholarship - "they don't own you" - and she was expelled.

That marriage never did materialise, but now she is on her third.

She and Sidney had a daughter, and just four months after the birth Mary won European long jump bronze. The couple parted after five years and she wed Bill Toomey a year after he had won 1968 Olympic decathlon gold. They have two daughters but they separated after 22 years.

Now 68, she lives with her third husband, John Reese, in Atascadero, California.

In her home town of Wells, in the market square near the cathedral, her winning long jump is marked out on the pavement.

How good was she? Rand headed the GB rankings in high and long jump, plus hurdles. Double Olympic decathlon champion Daley Thomson made GB No.1 only in the long jump.