Yvonne Murray

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This article is about the Scottish athlete. For the Irish journalist, see Yvonne Murray (journalist).
Yvonne Murray
Medal record
Women's Athletics
Representing  Great Britain
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 1988 Seoul 3,000 m
World Indoor Championships
Gold medal – first place 1993 Toronto 3000 m
World Cup
Gold medal – first place 1989 Barcelona 3000 m
Gold medal – first place 1994 London 3000 m
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 1990 Split 3000 m
Silver medal – second place 1994 Helsinki 3000 m
Bronze medal – third place 1986 Stuttgart 3000 m
Representing  Scotland
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 1994 Victoria 10,000 m
Silver medal – second place 1990 Auckland 3000 m
Bronze medal – third place 1986 Edinburgh 3000 m

Yvonne Carole Grace Murray-Mooney MBE (née Murray, born 4 October 1964), is a Scottish former middle-distance and long-distance track and road-running athlete. She won a bronze medal in the 3000 metres at the 1988 Olympic Games, and gold medals at this distance at the 1987 European Indoor Championships, the 1993 World Indoor Championships and the 1990 European Championships. She also won a gold medal in the 10,000 metres at the 1994 Commonwealth Games. Her 3000 metres best of 8:29.02 was set in the Olympic Final of 1988.

Biography[]

Yvonne Murray was born on 4 October 1964 in Musselburgh, East Lothian, Scotland.[1]

Murray was initially a Hockey player for Musselburgh Grammar School prior to taking up athletics in 1979.

Murray first competed on the international stage as a 16 year old representing Scotland at the 1981 IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Madrid, where she finished 79th in the senior women's race. Later that year she represented Great Britain at the European Junior Championships in Utrecht, Holland where she finished 6th in the 3000m event.

Murray's first major senior championship appearance was at aged 18 years, where she finished 10th in both the 1500m and 3000m finals at the 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane.[2]

Her first major athletics medal was a bronze in the 3000m event at the 1985 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Piraeus, Greece.[1]

In 1986, she won the silver medal in the 3000m event at the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Madrid,[1] a bronze medal in the 3000m event at the 1986 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh[2] and a bronze medal again in the 3000m event at the 1986 European Championships in Stuttgart.[1]

In 1987 she broke the championship record[citation needed] to win the 3000m at the 1987 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Lievin.[1]

At the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, she won a bronze medal in the 3000m event,[1] having taken the race on at 500m from the finish line. The winner, Tetyana Samolenko of the Soviet Union, tested positive for PEDS in 1993 and received a two year ban from the sport. Murray never had her Olympic medal upgraded.

In 1989 Murray won the 3000m event at the IAAF Grand Prix Final in Monaco and at the IAAF World Cup in Barcelona while representing Europe, becoming the first UK Female athlete to win a World Cup track event.

In January 1990, at the Commonwealth Games in Auckland, she won silver in the 3000m event[2] behind Canada's Angela Chalmers, with fellow Scot Liz McColgan third.[3] Later that year, she won a gold medal in the 3000m event at the 1990 European Athletics Championships in Split, Yugoslavia.[1]

She competed at the 1992 Olympic Games where she finished 8th in the 3000 metres event.[1]

Murray won a gold medal at the 1993 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Toronto,[1] again in the 3000m event, breaking away from the field after 1000m and winning the race by over 10 seconds, becoming the first UK Female athlete to win a World Indoor title.

In 1994, she won the silver medal in the 3000m event at the European Athletics Championships in Helsinki,[1] and then went on to win a gold medal in the 10,000m event at the 1994 Commonwealth Games at Victoria, Canada.[2] On her return from Canada, she won her second IAAF World Cup 3000m title in London.

Murray has won a full set of medals at the European Indoor Championships, European Outdoor Championships and the Commonwealth Games.[4]

Murray was also a UK champion at 5000 metres in 1983 and at 3000 metres in 1985 and 1987. She was six-times AAA champion outdoors, and AAA indoor 3000m champion in 1984. Murray was five-times Scottish outdoor champion.

Murray has held the Commonwealth 2000m record since 1986, breaking her own record in 1994 with a time of 5:26.93.

Murray was awarded an MBE in 1990, was voted BBC Scotland Sports Personality of the Year in 1994 and was inducted into the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.[4]

As at 2020, Murray remains Scotland's most decorated individual athlete in Olympic, World, European and Commonwealth competition, having won 11 medals in individual events.

Achievements[]

Year Competition Venue Position Event Notes
Representing  Scotland
1982 World Cross Country Championships Rome, Italy 42nd Senior race (4.663 km) 15:35.2
Commonwealth Games Brisbane, Australia 10th 1500 m 4:16.59
10th 3000 m 9:21.45
1983 World Cross Country Championships Gateshead, United Kingdom 94th Senior race (4.072 km) 15:45
1985 World Cross Country Championships Lisbon, Portugal 42nd Senior race (4.99 km) 16:13
1986 World Cross Country Championships Neuchatel, Switzerland 38th Senior race (4.65 km) 15:48.7
Commonwealth Games Edinburgh, United Kingdom 5th 1500 m 4:14.36
3rd 3000 m 8:55.32
1987 World Cross Country Championships Warsaw, Poland 16th Senior race (5.05 km) 17:24
1990 Commonwealth Games Auckland, New Zealand 4th 1500 m 4:09.54
2nd 3000 m 8:39.46
1994 Commonwealth Games Victoria, Canada 1st 10 000 m 31:56.97
Representing  Great Britain
1985 European Indoor Championships Piraeus, Greece 3rd 3000 m 9:00.94
1986 European Indoor Championships Madrid, Spain 2nd 3000 m 9:01.31
European Championships Stuttgart, Germany 3rd 3000 m 8:37.15
1987 European Indoor Championships Lievin, France 1st 3000 m 8:46.06
World Indoor Championships Indianapolis, United States 5th 3000 m 8:48.43
World Championships Rome, Italy heats 1500 m 4:07.83
7th 3000 m 8:43.94
1988 Olympic Games Seoul, South Korea 3rd 3000 m 8:29.02
1989 World Cup Barcelona, Spain 1st 3000 m 8:44.32
1990 European Championships Split, Yugoslavia 1st 3000 m 8:43.06
1991 World Championships Tokyo, Japan 10th 3000 m 8:44.52
1992 Olympic Games Barcelona, Spain 8th 3000 m 8:55.85
1993 World Indoor Championships Toronto, Canada 1st 3000 m 8:50.55
World Championships Stuttgart, Germany 9th 3000 m 8:43.46
1994 European Championships Helsinki, Finland 2nd 3000 m 8:36.48
World Cup London, United Kingdom 1st 3000 m 8:56.81
1995 World Championships Gothenburg, Sweden — 10,000 m DNF

Note: At the 1989 World Cup, Murray was representing Europe.

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j "Olympedia – Yvonne Murray". www.olympedia.org. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Yvonne Murray". Team Scotland. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
  3. ^ "Athletics 3000m - Women Auckland 1990 | Commonwealth Games Federation". thecgf.com. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b "Yvonne Murray-Mooney, MBE | Scottish Sports Hall of Fame". www.sshf.sportscotland.org.uk. Retrieved 18 July 2021.

External links[]

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