Lynne Watson

Who is Lynne Watson?

Lynne Watson, known after marriage as Lynne Bates was an Australian backstroke swimmer of the 1960s, who won a silver medal in the 4x100m medley relay at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, narrowly missing two more medals.

Coming from Western Australia, Watson combined with Janet Steinbeck, Lyn McClements and Judy Playfair to register a silver medal in the 4x100m medley relay, trailing the Americans home by 1.7s. Competing in the individual 100m freestyle, Watson was eliminated in the semifinals. She placed sixth and fourth in the 100m and 200m backstroke respectively. She also finished fourth as part of the 4x100m freestyle relay team. Two years later at the 1970 Commonwealth Games, Watson won four gold medals in both backstroke events and in the 4x100m freestyle and medley relays, as well as a silver in the 100m freestyle. She later became a team administrator for Australia at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.