Mandurah's Olympic champion Betty Cuthbert has died

Betty Cuthbert wins the 100m final in Melbourne in 1956. PIC: Seven West Media

Mandurah's Olympic champion Betty Cuthbert has died, aged 79 after a long battle with multiple sclerosis.

Betty Cuthbert was the original Aussie Golden Girl who took the 1956 Melbourne Olympics by storm.

Cuthbert was a four-time Olympic gold medallist, winning three at the 1956 Melbourne games in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay events, the only Olympian, male or female, to have done so.

Only Ian Thorpe has won more gold for Australia.

Cuthbert was born in Sydney's western suburbs and moved to Mandurah in 1991.

The 79 year old had been diagnosed with MS in 1974 and used a wheelchair for many years.

She was a torch bearer at the Sydney Olympic Games' opening ceremony in 2000, in front of a viewing audience of three billion people.

betty 2

PIC: ABC News

Tributes are flowing for the sprinting legend with Raelene Boyle telling the ABC, Betty's wins did a lot for women in sport.

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