Raelene Boyle AM, MBE

Raelene Boyle AM, MBE 's Biography

Retired athlete, Raelene Boyle, represented Australia at four Olympic Games as a sprinter. One of Australia’s greatest runners, Raelene won 3 Silver medals.  A sporting legend that is both inspirational and motivational, Raelene speaks on her career highlights and her battle with cancer.

At the age of 17, Raelene won her first silver medal at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games for the 200m sprint and at the 1972 Olympics in Munich, collected two more silver medals, in the 100 metre and 200 metre sprints.

At the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, Raelene finished fourth in the 100m sprint, but was disqualified from the 200m race for allegedly making two false starts. Unfortunately, a video replay later showed that she had not false started on her first start. However, Raelene received the honour of flag bearer for the Australian team, the first women to do so.

Her final major competitive appearance was at the 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane, where she won gold in the 400m sprint, and silver in the 4x400m relay.

In 1996, Raelene was diagnosed with breast cancer, and underwent treatment and subsequently, she became a campaigner for breast cancer awareness. After beating breast cancer, Raelene was dealt another blow when she was diagnosed in 2000, then again in 2001 with ovarian cancer. She once again underwent treatment, and again successfully fought her illness.

An experienced speaker, Raelene provides insight into her battle with overcoming cancer and the determination to beat the illness in her speeches. Raelene also touches on stories from her outstanding Olympic career and highlights some of her fondest sporting memories.

Raelene divides her time between public speaking duties and helping raise awareness and funds for Breast Cancer Network Australia and the Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation in partnership of NAB. She is a board member of BCNA.