Debbie Brill was among the inductees into Athletics Canada’s Hall of Fame last month.
Brill, a former member of the Langley Mustangs Track and Field Club, was the first Canadian female high jumper to clear six feet (1.82m). She still holds both the indoor (1.99m) and outdoor (1.98m) Canadian records. Brill is a three-time Commonwealth Games medalist, winning gold in 1970 and 1982, and silver in 1978. She also won bronze in 1985 at the world indoor championships, and twice competed at the Pan American Games, winning gold in 1971 and bronze in 1979.
Brill also represented Canada at the Olympics in 1972, 1976 and 1984. She was ranked No. 1 in the world in 1979 and qualified for the next year’s Olympics, but Canada wound up boycotting the event. Brill was inducted into the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame in 1989.
