Wilma Rudolph was born into a poor home in Tennessee. At
age four, she had double
pneumonia with scarlet
fever, a deadly combination which left her paralyzed with polio.
She had to wear a brace
and the doctor said she would never put her foot on the earth.
But her mother
encouraged her; she told Wilma that with God-given ability, persistence
and faith she could do
anything she wanted. Wilma said, "I want to be the fastest woman
on the track on this
earth." At the age of nine, against the advice of the doctors, she
removed the brace and
took the first step the doctors had said she never would. At the
age of 13, she entered
her first race and came way, way last. And then she entered her
second, and third and
fourth and came way, way last until a day came when she came in
first.
At the age of 15 she
went to Tennessee State University where she met a coach by the
name of Ed Temple. She
told him, "I want to be the fastest woman on the track on this
earth." Temple
said, "With your spirit nobody can stop you and besides, I will help
you."
The day came when she
was at the Olympics and at the Olympics you are matched with
the best of the best.
Wilma was matched against a woman named Jutta Heine who had
never been beaten. The
first event was the 100-meter race. Wilma beat Jutta Heine and
won her first gold
medal. The second event was the 200-meter race and Wilma beat
Jutta a second time and
won her second gold medal. The third event was the 400-meter
relay and she was racing
against Jutta one more time. In the relay, the fastest person
always runs the last lap
and they both anchored their teams. The first three people ran
and changed the baton
easily. When it came to Wilma's turn, she dropped the baton. But
Wilma saw Jutta shoot up
at the other end; she picked the baton, ran like a machine,
beat Jutta a third time
and won her third gold medal. It became history: That a paralytic
woman became the fastest
woman on this earth at the 1960 Olympics.
