French Olympic champion Colette Besson dies

Frenchwoman Colette Besson, who caused one of the great upsets in Olympic history with her 400 metres triumph in 1968, has died from cancer, aged 59.

Besson was 22 when she won gold in Mexico with a fantastic lap, catching up her rivals on her way to a totally unexpected victory.

Her best time before the Games was 53.8 and she won in 52.03, 0.09 ahead of Britain's Lillian Board, the favourite.

Board was way ahead of the rest of the field with just 100 metres to go but with an amazing last sprint, Besson moved up from fifth place to beat Board on the finish line by one tenth of a second.

"This is a great loss," said IAAF president Lamine Diack, who is from Senegal but studied in France and is a former French long jump champion.

"I believe that she made a tremendous contribution to world athletics, as a charismatic and determined athlete in an age when women's athletics was still developing," he added.

"She became a leading role model both for French athletics and the cause of women's athletics around the world, not only as a graceful runner, but later as a coach. She continued to give back to the sport throughout her life."

Board, who was 19 in Mexico, contracted cancer in 1970 and died in a Munich clinic 13 days after her 22nd birthday.

PHOTO FINISH

At the European championships in Athens in 1969, Besson and her compatriot Nicole Duclos both broke the world record in 51.7 but Duclos was declared the winner after the photo finish.

The two French athletes set another world record in those championships, in the 4x400 relay.

Besson had become involved in the fight against doping and was an active supporter of France's bid to stage the 2012 Olympics.

Her illness prevented her from going to Singapore last month for the vote by the International Olympic Committee, in which London beat Paris.

"A great champion has left us," said French Sports minister Jean-Francois Lamour. "With her determination and her will to serve sport, she was an example for all of us."

The popular Frenchwoman, who retired from competitive sport in 1977, continued to support French athletes and all those taking part in the world championships in Helsinki were saddened by her loss on Tuesday.

"She was always smiling, always present and available," said Jean Galfione, the 1996 Olympic pole vault champion.

"I always knew that I could rely on her. This is so sad."

French Athletics Federation president Bernard Amsalem was a close friend of Besson.

"Colette had told us about her cancer during the 2003 world championships in Paris," he said

"She should have died in three of four months but she fought like a great champion and that allowed us to keep her with us for another two years.

"This is a very sad day for French athletics."