Sheila Lerwill

Sheila W. Lerwill (born 16 August 1928) is a British athlete who competed mainly in the high jump.

Early life
She was born Sheila Alexander in London, originating from Streatham.

She played netball for England and Surrey. She lived on Glenister Park Road.

Career
In 1950 she was trained by George Pallett.

She took the British record on 5 August 1950 at 5ft 6.5.

Lerwill broke the world record for women's high jump on 7 July 1951 in London with a jump of 1.72 metres, beating the previous record of 1.71 metres set by Fanny Blankers-Koen of the Netherlands on 30 May 1943 in Amsterdam.

The record was broken on 22 May 1954 by Aleksandra Chudina of the USSR in Kiev with a jump of 1.73 metres. She competed for Great Britain in the high jump at the 1952 Summer Olympics, held in Helsinki, Finland, where she won the silver medal with a jump of 1.65 metres. It was Britain's best athletics medal at the games.

Personal life
She married Michael H. M. Lerwill, from Westerham, on Saturday 31 March 1951 at Holy Redeemer Church in Wandsworth.