The 1977 Pacific Conference Games was the third edition of the international athletics competition between five Pacific coast nations: Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand and the United States. It was held on 3 and 4 December in Canberra, Australia. A total of 20 men's and 14 women's athletics events were contested. Two new women's events were added to the programme of the previous edition: the 400 metres hurdles and the 4×400 metres relay. The relay event had gained Olympic status in 1972, but the inclusion of the women's hurdles event was ahead of its time as it was not held at the Olympics until seven years later.

It marked the first major international athletics event to be held in the country since the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games. The venue, Bruce Stadium, was purpose-built for the competition and represented a new, modern stadium for the sport in Australia. The stadium later went on to host the 1985 IAAF World Cup. The area's sporting reputation grew with the opening of the Australian Institute of Sport nearby in 1981.

Medal summary

Men

EventGoldSilverBronze
100 metresPaul Narracott (AUS)10.52Bill Collins (USA)10.69Fred Lehmann (AUS)10.77
200 metresBill Collins (USA)20.83Paul Narracott (AUS)21.06Toshio Toyota (JPN)21.28
400 metresBevan Smith (NZL)46.27Jim O'Sullivan (AUS)46.35Mike Willis (AUS)46.93
800 metresChum Darvall (AUS)1:47.88John Higham (AUS)1:48.54Takashi Ishii (JPN)1:48.93
1500 metresTakashi Ishii (JPN)3:45.08Graham Crouch (AUS)3:45.17Geoff Shaw (NZL)3:45.94
5000 metresDavid Fitzsimons (AUS)13:45.15Geoff Shaw (NZL)13:50.66Dave Hill (CAN)13:55.22
10,000 metresRob de Castella (AUS)29:23.66Greg Fredericks (USA)29:28.93Peter Butler (CAN)30:20.02
110 m hurdlesWarren Parr (AUS)14.21Charles Foster (USA)14.21Don Wright (AUS)14.25
400 m hurdlesGarry Brown (AUS)51.89Sam Turner (USA)53.08Takashi Nagao (JPN)53.30
3000 metres steeplechaseRon Addison (USA)8:38.16Masanari Shintaku (JPN)8:44.44Bob Hendy (AUS)8:55.46
4 × 100 m relayUnited States (USA)38.85Japan (JPN)39.54Australia (AUS) Fred Lehmann Paul Narracott Jim O'Sullivan Don Wright39.96
4 × 400 m relayUnited States (USA)3:07.26Japan (JPN)3:08.01Australia (AUS) Chum Darvall Paul Narracott Jim O'Sullivan Mike Willis3:11.18
High jumpKazunori Koshikawa (JPN)2.17 mRon Livers (USA)2.13 mMoriichi Takako (JPN)2.10 m
Pole vaultBruce Simpson (CAN)5.25 mRay Boyd (AUS)5.05 mYasuhiro Kigawa (JPN)5.00 m
Long jumpChris Commons (AUS)8.08w mKashira Machida (JPN)7.64 m wGlenn Stewart (AUS)7.59 m
Triple jumpRon Livers (USA)16.63 mYasushi Ueta (JPN)16.35 mMilan Tiff (USA)16.32 m
Shot putColin Anderson (USA)19.62 mBruno Pauletto (CAN)18.43 mYuzo Koyama (JPN)15.44 m
Discus throwDan Gardner (USA)57.54 mKiyotaka Kawasaki (JPN)57.44 mWayne Martin (AUS)51.66 m
Hammer throwPeter Farmer (AUS)67.62 mYoji Kitano (JPN)62.82 mMurray Cheater (NZL)61.06 m
Javelin throwPhil Olsen (CAN)80.98 mMike O'Rourke (NZL)74.32 mJohn Corazza (CAN)73.54 m

Women

EventGoldSilverBronze
100 metresDenise Robertson (AUS)11.67Debbie Wells (AUS)11.79Wendy Brown (NZL)11.91
200 metresDenise Robertson (AUS)22.87Debbie Wells (AUS)23.64Kim Robertson (NZL)23.68
400 metresVerna Burnard (AUS)52.63Sharon Dabney (USA)53.03Marian Fisher (AUS)53.19
800 metresFrancie Larrieu (USA)2:06.30Michelle Green (NZL)2:06.68Alison Wrench (AUS)2:07.22
1500 metresFrancie Larrieu (USA)4:18.32Debbie Pearson (CAN)4:19.09Debbie Campbell (CAN)Jan Healy (NZL)4:26.82
100 m hurdlesDeby LaPlante (USA)14.03Cheryl Boswell (AUS)14.35Emi Akimoto (JPN)14.44
400 m hurdlesMarian Fisher (AUS)57.28Francine Gendron (CAN)58.40Carmen Campton (AUS)58.53
4 × 100 m relayAustralia (AUS) Denise Robertson Lyn Jacenko Marian Fisher Debbie Wells44.26New Zealand (NZL)44.95Canada (CAN)45.99
4 × 400 m relayAustralia (AUS) Denise Robertson Verna Burnard Carmen Campton Marian Fisher3:34.24Canada (CAN)3:37.94New Zealand (NZL)3:42.54
High jumpDebbie Brill (CAN)1.88 mTamami Yagi (JPN)1.82 mChris Annison (AUS)1.80 m
Long jumpLyn Jacenko (AUS)6.59w mErica Hooker (AUS)6.38 mNoeline Hodgins (NZL)6.18 m
Shot putGael Mulhall (AUS)16.15 mKayoko Hayashi (JPN)16.00 mLucette Moreau (CAN)15.40 m
Discus throwJane Haist (CAN)55.64 mGael Mulhall (AUS)54.40 mLynne Winbigler (USA)52.58 m
Javelin throwPam Matthews (AUS)56.88 mKaren Smith (USA)54.50 mKeiko Myogai (JPN)49.90 m

Medalists

  • . GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2015-01-14.
  • . Athletics Australia. Retrieved on 2015-01-15.

External links

  • from the organising committee