| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Debbie Arden Brill |
| Born | March 10, 1953 Mission, British Columbia |
| Sport | |
| Sport | High jump |
| College/university team | Unaffiliated |
| Achievements and titles | |
| World finals | First International competition in 1968, at age 15. |
| Regional finals | Started competing provincially in British Columbia in 1966, at age 13 |
| National finals | First competed on a Canadian National level in 1967, at age 14 |
| Olympic finals |
Competed in the Olympic Games in 1972, 1976, and 1984. Qualified for the 1980 Olympic Games in 1980 subsequently boycotted by Canada. IAAF rankings IAAF World Indoor Games Rank: 3 Height: 1.90 m. Locale: Paris Date: 19/01/1985 23rd Olympic Games Rank: 5 Height: 1.94 Locale: Los Angeles, CA Date: 10/08/1984 20th Olympic Games Rank: 8 Height: 1.82 Locale: München Date: 04/09/1972 [1] In 1979, the year before the 1980 Olympics, Debbie was ranked No. 1 in the world by the American magazine - "Track and Field News" ("The bible of the sport since 1948").[2] |
| Highest world ranking | First place in the world rankings 1979 |
| Personal best(s) | 1.99 meters indoors at The Edmonton Journal Games in 1982, 1.98 meters outdoors in 1984 in Rieti, Italy |
Debbie Brill OC (born March 10, 1953 in Mission, British Columbia) is a Canadian high jump athlete who was the first North American woman to clear 6 feet, at age 16. Her unique reverse jumping style was called the "Brill Bend". She is an eleven-time national champion of Canada.
Debbie has held the Canadian National High Jump record, both indoor (1.99 meters - 6' 6½ ") and outdoor (1.98 meters - 6' 6"), since 1969, establishing her first Canadian High Jump record when she was 16 years old. Her Canadian High Jump records remain unbroken. She was ranked in the top 8 female jumpers in the world for 12 years in a career that spanned 21 years, from 1967–1988. Debbie's jump, outdoors, of 1.98 m. in 1984 would have tied the 5th highest jump by a woman in an outdoors meet in the summer (August) of 2010.
In 1979 Debbie won a gold medal in the World Cup athletics championship (the precursor to the World Athletics Championships) held in Montreal, Canada.
Debbie was ranked number one in the world by Track and Field News going into the 1980 Olympics which Canada boycotted because of the U.S.S.R.'s military involvement in Afghanistan.
In January 1982 Debbie established a World Indoor High Jump record of 1.99 meters in Edmonton, Alberta, 5 months after giving birth to her first son, Neil. She has a daughter, Katelin, and a son, Jacob. She is married to a physician, Dr. Douglas Coleman.
In 1983, she was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in recognition for being "Canada's premier woman high-jumper".[3]
| Year | Tournament | Venue | Result | Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Commonwealth Games | Edinburgh, Scotland | 1st | High Jump |
| 1971 | Pan American Games | Cali, Colombia | 1st | High Jump |
| 1972 | Olympic Games | Munich, West Germany | 8th | High Jump |
| 1978 | Commonwealth Games | Edmonton, Canada | 2nd | High Jump |
| 1979 | Pan American Games | San Juan, Puerto Rico | 3rd | High Jump |
| 1982 | Commonwealth Games | Brisbane, Australia | 1st | High Jump |
| 1983 | World Championships | Helsinki, Finland | 6th | High Jump |
| 1984 | Olympic Games | Los Angeles, California | 5th | High Jump |
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| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Louise Ritter |
USA National High Jump Champion 1979 |
Succeeded by Coleen Rienstra |
| Preceded by Pamela Spencer |
USA National High Jump Champion 1982 |
Succeeded by Louise Ritter |
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