WILMA RUDOLPH

OLYMPIC LEGEND

Who Is Wilma Rudolph?

Wilma Rudolph smiling

Born on June 23, 1940, in St. Bethlehem, Tennessee, Wilma Rudolph was a sickly child who had to wear a brace on her left leg. She overcame her disabilities to compete in the 1956 Summer Olympic Games, and in 1960, she became the first American woman to win three gold medals in track and field at a single Olympics. Later in life, she formed the Wilma Rudolph Foundation to promote amateur athletics. The Olympic great died on November 12, 1994, following a battle with brain cancer.

Awards & Accomplishments

3

Olympic Gold Medals

1

Olympic Bronze Medal

3

Broken World Records

1956

Bronze medal, 4 X 100-meter relay, Olympic Games, Melbourne, Australia

1960

World record in the 200-meter race at the Olympic Trials at Texas Christian University

1960

Gold medals, 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash, and 4 × 100-meter relay, Olympic Games, Rome, Italy; first American woman to win three Olympic gold medals

1961

Received Sullivan Award and Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year Award

1962

Received Babe Didrikson Zaharias Award

1973

Inducted into Black Athletes Hall of Fame

1974

Inducted into National Track and Field Hall of Fame

1980

Inducted into Women’s Sports Foundation Hall of Fame

1983

Inducted into U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame

1987

Received National Collegiate Athletic Association’s Silver Anniversary Award

1993

Honored as one of the National Sports Awards “Great Ones”

Historical Gallery

Quotes

"Never underestimate the power of dreams and the influence of the human spirit. We are all the same in this notion. The potential for greatness lives within each of us."

Wilma Rudolph
2020-03-11T19:22:11+00:00
"Never underestimate the power of dreams and the influence of the human spirit. We are all the same in this notion. The potential for greatness lives within each of us."

"The triumph can't be had without the struggle. And I know what struggle is. I have spent a lifetime trying to share what it has meant to be a woman first in the world of sports so that other young women have a chance to reach their dreams."

Wilma Rudolph
2020-03-11T19:23:26+00:00
"The triumph can't be had without the struggle. And I know what struggle is. I have spent a lifetime trying to share what it has meant to be a woman first in the world of sports so that other young women have a chance to reach their dreams."

"My doctors told me I would never walk again. My mother told me I would. I believed my mother."

Wilma Rudolph
2020-03-11T19:28:05+00:00
"My doctors told me I would never walk again. My mother told me I would. I believed my mother."

"When I was going through my transition of being famous, I tried to ask God why was I here? What was my purpose? Surely, it wasn't just to win three gold medals. There has to be more to this life than that."

Wilma Rudolph
2020-03-11T19:29:37+00:00
"When I was going through my transition of being famous, I tried to ask God why was I here? What was my purpose? Surely, it wasn't just to win three gold medals. There has to be more to this life than that."

"My mother taught me very early to believe I could achieve any accomplishment I wanted to. The first was to walk without braces."

Wilma Rudolph
2020-03-11T19:36:23+00:00
"My mother taught me very early to believe I could achieve any accomplishment I wanted to. The first was to walk without braces."
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Wilma Rudolph

Business Inquiries

As the agent for the Wilma Rudolph’s estate, CMG Worldwide is dedicated to maintaining legacy of one of America’s greatest athletes. We are interested in commercial opportunities that are consistent with the legacy of our client.

Please contact us today if you are interested in business opportunities involving the intellectual property rights associated with Wilma Rudolph. To see other CMG clients, please visit our website.

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