The 16-year-old Mrs. Margaret Bailes of the Oregon Track Club began her career as one of the top U.S. sprinters with a fifth place in the 1967 AAU 200m. The following year she won the AAU 100m after equaling the world record of 11.1 in both the heats and the final. In the 200m at the AAU, Bailes finished second to Wyomia Tyus, but at the Final Trials a week later, the positions were reversed – Tyus took the 100m, while Bailes won the 200m with Tyus in second place. At the 1968 Olympics, Bailes reached the finals of both sprints, finishing fifth in the 100m and seventh in the 200m. Margaret Bailes was a member of the relay team that set a new world record of 42.8 and at the end of the season she retired from the sport at the age of 17.
Personal Bests: 100 – 11.30 (1968); 200 – 22.95 (1968).
United States