In 1952, she dramatically won the long jump gold medal at the Olympic Games in Helsinki.
Williams went on to further sporting success and in 1954 broke the world record for women’s long jump with an astonishing leap of 6.29m in front of a home crowd in Gisborne.
The Dunedin-born athlete also competed in discus, javelin and shot put, and across her disciplines won four gold medals and one silver at the Commonwealth Games. She was a star in basketball and netball at the provincial and national level, which she coached for many years.