Madeleine Cobb

Madeleine Weston (later Cobb) enjoyed a long career in senior athletics from 1956 until 1972. She first attracted attention as a 15-year-old junior when she went through the 1955 season undefeated and captured both the 60- and 100 yards girls under-15 titles.

The following year Weston was the 100 yards national under-17 champion and also made her Great Britain début against Czechoslovakia at the White City. In 1957 she was runner-up to Heather Armitage in the senior 100 at the WAAA Championships and in 1958 won her only senior WAAA title when she beat Armitage with a championship record-equalling 10.6. Weston went to that year´s British Empire and Commonwealth Games at Cardiff and won gold in the 4×110 yards relay, and bronze in the individual 100 yards. A few weeks later, she went to Stockholm for the European Athletics Championships and won bronze in the sprint relay but could only finish fourth in the 100 metres. Sadly, Weston was overlooked for the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, and when the next Olympics came around in 1960, she missed part of the season through injury and was, again, not selected the GB squad.

Weston married middle-distance runner David Cobb in 1961 and ran under the name Madeleine Cobb after that. She went to the Commonwealth Games and European Championships in 1962 but failed to win a medal. The following year Cobb enjoyed one of the highlights of her career when, in a match with the USA at White City, along with Daphne Arden, Mary Bignal-Rand, and Dorothy Hyman, she set a new 4x110 yards relay world record of 45.2.

Cobb eventually made her Olympic début at Tokyo in 1964, but failed to medaL She was overlooked, again, for the 1968 Mexico Games, but Cobb showed a resurgence in form and in 1968 won the WAAA indoor 60 metres title and the following year won the European Indoor Championships 50 metres bronze medal. At that year´s outdoor Europeans, she reached the 200 metres final. Cobb added to her medal tally with a silver in the 4x100 metres at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games at Edinburgh before winning her second WAAA indoor 60 metres title in 1972. Unfortunately, she was not selected for the München Olympics and in December 1972 announced her retirement after a 17-year-career.

Personal Bests: 60 – 7.4i (?); 100 – 11.5 (1957); 200 – 23.5 (?).