Rosemary Payne: key obituary facts
Is Rosemary Payne dead? Yes. Rosemary Payne died on November 8, 2026, at age 93.
Cause of death: Rosemary Payne's cause of death has not been publicly confirmed.
What was Rosemary Payne known for?
She was a British discus thrower.
More about Rosemary Payne
Born: 19 May 1933.
Place of birth: Kelso.
Gender: female.
Occupation: athletics competitor, shot putter, discus thrower.
Nationality: United Kingdom.
Spouse: Howard Payne.
Also known as: Rosemary Charters, Rosemary Chrimes, Christine Rosemary Payne.
Rosemary Payne, the Scottish Olympic discus thrower who represented Great Britain at the 1972 Munich Games, died November 8, 2026, aged 93.
Born Christine Rosemary Charters in Kelso on May 19, 1933, she attended Kelso High School before studying at the University of Edinburgh, where she completed a teaching degree. Charters represented Scotland in the discus at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, finishing 10th.
At those Games, she met hammer thrower Howard Payne; they married in Birmingham on February 5, 1960, and she competed under her married name thereafter. Her results improved on the international stage: in 1970 she won the gold medal for Scotland in the discus at the Commonwealth Games. Two years later, she represented Great Britain in the event at the Summer Olympics in Munich. Payne’s sporting record thus included appearances for Scotland at the Commonwealth Games and for Great Britain at the Olympics, as well as a Commonwealth title. She was also identified as a shot putter, alongside her principal role as a discus thrower. Her career connected her home town of Kelso with major competitions in 1958, 1970 and 1972, across the period in which she first competed as Charters and later as Payne.