Liz McBlain
A stellar track and field athlete, Liz McBlain, 1972 BPE, has set school, city, provincial, national, and world records. McBlain's talents as an athlete extended beyond the world of track and field, where she was a University of Alberta Panda from 1969-72 and from 1984-85.She was also a Panda cross-country skier and basketball player for the same three seasons. In 1972, McBlain was selected to compete on the Canadian Olympic relay team. In addition, she competed in the pentathlon and heptathlon events and was named to Canada's national team for the period of 1973-81.
Competing in the 1983 Master's World Championships in Puerto Rico, she won the world championship in both the high jump and the pentathlon, a major accomplishment. Continuing in World Master's competitions, McBlain amassed an amazing list of gold, silver, and bronze medals in the games held in Italy (1985), Australia (1987 and 1994), USA (1989), Finland (1991), Japan (1993), and South Africa (1997).
In the '80s and '90s, she dominated in her events in the Pan American Master's competitions. In March 1988, she set two indoor world master's records in the 400 metres and the high jump.
From 1973, McBlain has contributed to the building of sport programs as a teacher and as a coach in the Edmonton/Leduc school systems as well as in Quebec and Minnesota. She is a Canadian track and field official and served as a volunteer for the 1978 Commonwealth Games, 1983 Universiade Games, Goodwill Games, and the World Firefighter Games.
In 1994, McBlain was appointed as the co-meet director for the Master's Pan American Games held in Edmonton.
In 1999, in recognition of her outstanding contributions to sport, McBlain was inducted to the University of Alberta's Sports Wall of Fame.