Debbie Heald

Debbie Heald is a former American middle distance runner.

Heald is the daughter of Richard and Ernestine Heald. She grew up in La Mirada, California.^[1]

At the age of eleven, Heald was a member of the Hutchinson Track Club.^[1] At a meet in Lancaster she finished a mile race with a time of 5:33.9, which at the time was the fastest time recorded for a girl of her age.^[2]

By the time she was fourteen, Heald had won three state championships in running competitions and five district Amateur Athletic Union titles. She also held two national crowns.^[3]

As a 16-year-old junior at Neff High School in La Mirada, California,^[4][5] Heald defeated 1500m world record holder Tamara Pangelova of the USSR on March 17, 1972 at the Richmond Coliseum.^[6][7] In doing so, Heald set a new women's world indoor mile record at 4 minutes 38.5 seconds.^[1][^[4]

Heald's American high school girl's indoor mile record stood for over 40 years,^[8] until finally broken on January 26, 2013 by Mary Cain of Bronxville, NY.^[9][10] Until that time, Heald's was the longest standing of any girls' high school record.^[11]

Heald attended California State University, graduating with a degree in education.^[12]

Heald continued to train throughout her college years, but her career was progressively hampered by repeated injuries and tendonitis from overtraining, as well as a diagnosis of schizophrenia.^[1]

In 2002, Heald carried the Olympic torch in Los Angeles on its nationwide tour in advance of the Winter Olympic Games at Salt Lake City.^[12]

References

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