Julia Bennett

{{Infobox sportsperson

| name = Julia Machin
née Bennett

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| nationality = British (English)

| sport = Athletics

| event = high jump

| club = Epsom and Ewell Harriers

| birth_date = 26 March 1970

| birth_place =

| death_date =

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Julia Machin (née Bennett, born 26 March 1970) is a former high jumper who competed for England and Epsom and Ewell Harriers.{{cite web | url=https://www.yourlocalguardian.co.uk/sport/other_sport/8150243.machins-welcome-return-to-county-event/ | title=Machin's welcome return to county event | date=6 May 2010 }}

Biography

Bennett achieved her best of 1.92 metres on 6 March 1990, when winning at the AAA Indoor Championships at the age of just 19.

Bennett became the British high jump champion after winning the 1990 UK Championships and British AAA Championships title at the 1994 AAA Championships, where in the latter, she set her outdoor best of 1.89 metres on 11 June 1994.{{cite news |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000901/19940613/015/0015 |title=Classy Crampton hits the jackpot |work=Huddersfield Daily Examiner |date=13 June 1994 |via=British Newspaper Archive |url-access=subscription |access-date=31 March 2025 }} Shortly afterwards she represented England at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria, Canada.{{cite web|url=https://teamengland.org/commonwealth-games-history/victoria-1994/athletes |title=Victoria 1994 Team |website=Team England |access-date=30 March 2025 }}

She also has a Heptathlon best of 5747 (1996) and an indoor Pentathlon best of 4297 (1998). The latter score (as of 2022) ranks her 10th on the British all-time list.{{cite web|url=https://www.thepowerof10.info/rankings/rankinglist.aspx?event=PenlW&agegroup=ALL&sex=W&alltime=y |work=Power of 10 |title=Pentathlon |accessdate=13 March 2018}}

Bennett finished second behind Susan Jones at the 2003 AAA Championships.{{cite news |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000578/20030728/590/0027 |title=Athletics |work=Aberdeen Press and Journal |date=28 July 2003 |via=British Newspaper Archive|url-access=subscription |access-date=6 April 2025}}

Having cleared 1.88m aged 35 in 2005, she represented England at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. She went on to break the British masters age 40+ record with 1.78m in 2010, and to equal the British masters 45+ record with 1.65m in 2016.{{cite web|url=https://www.athleticsweekly.com/featured-julia-machin-equals-uk-w45-high-jump-record-weekly-round-up-51026- |work=Athletics Weekly |title=Julia Machin equals W45 high jump record |date=5 September 2016 |accessdate=13 March 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://www.athleticsweekly.com/tag/julia-machin |work= Athletics Weekly |title= Julia Machin tag |accessdate=13 March 2018}}

International competitions

{{AchievementTable}}
colspan=6\|Representing {{GBR2}}
1989 \|European Junior Championships \|Varaždin, Yugoslavia \|5th \|1.83 m
1990 \|European Indoor Championships \|Glasgow, United Kingdom \|15th \|1.80 m
1991 \|Universiade \|Sheffield, United Kingdom \|9th \|1.84 m (1.85 m)
1993 \|Universiade \|Buffalo, United States \|14th \|1.80 m (1.83 m)
1994 \|European Cup \|Birmingham, United Kingdom \|6th \|1.85 m
1994 \|European Championships \|Helsinki, Finland \|19th (q) \|1.85 m
colspan=6\|Representing {{ENG}}
1994 \|Commonwealth Games \|Victoria, Canada \|7th \|1.85 m (1.85 m)
2006 \|Commonwealth Games \|Melbourne, Australia \|9th \|1.78 m
colspan=6\| Results in parentheses () indicate height achieved in qualifying round

colspan=6|Representing {{GBR2}}

1989

|European Junior Championships

|Varaždin, Yugoslavia

|5th

|1.83 m

1990

|European Indoor Championships

|Glasgow, United Kingdom

|15th

|1.80 m

1991