Wilma Rudolph

American runner

Birthday: June 23, 1940

Birthplace: St Bethlehem, Tennessee, U.S.

Death Date: November 12, 1994

Age at death: 54 years old

Sign: Cancer

About Wilma Rudolph

Wilma Rudolph was an American professional runner who at one point in her massively successful career became known as the fastest woman in the world. She competed in the 1956 and 1960 Summer Olympics, in which she won three gold medals. She is widely regarded as one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century. Besides sports, she was also a prominent civil rights and women's rights activist.

Personal Life

She was married twice. Her first marriage was to Willie Ward in 1961. The marriage lasted only 17 months. Her second marriage was to Robert Eldridge. She and Robert had four children together. The couple got divorced in 1980.

Achievements

During the 1960 Summer Olympic Games in Rome, Italy, she made history by becoming the first American female athlete to win three gold medals in track and field in just a single Olympic tournament. She is an inductee into both the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame and the National Women's Hall of Fame.

Trivia

She was born prematurely.

She had 21 siblings.

Wilma Rudolph Photo Gallery

Title

Wilma Rudolph at the finish line during 50 yard dash at track meet in Madison Square Garden

Author

New York World-Telegram and the Sun Newspaper Photograph Collection.

Source

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wilma_Rudolph.jpg

License

Public domain

Famous quotes by Wilma Rudolph

I loved the feeling of freedom in running, the fresh air, the feeling that the only person I'm competing with is me.Wilma Rudolph

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

Winning is great, sure, but if you are really going to do something in life, the secret is learning how to lose. Nobody goes undefeated all the time. If you can pick up after a crushing defeat, and go on to win again, you are going to be a champion someday.Wilma Rudolph

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Wilma Rudolph's Popularity

Wilma Rudolph was a famous American runner, who was born on June 23, 1940. As a person born on this date, Wilma Rudolph is listed in our database as the 32nd most popular celebrity for the day (June 23) and the 30th most popular for the year (1940).

People born on June 23 fall under the Zodiac sign of Cancer, the Crab. Wilma Rudolph is the 852nd most popular Cancer.

Aside from information specific to Wilma Rudolph's birthday, Wilma Rudolph is the 5691st most famous American.

In general, Wilma Rudolph ranks as the 9121st most popular famous person, and the 7th most popular athlete of all time. “The Famous Birthdays” catalogs over 25,000 famous people, everyone, from actors to actresses to singers to tiktok stars, from serial killers to chefs to scientists to youtubers and more. If you're curious to see who was born on your birthday, you can use our database to find out who, what, where, when and why. You can search by birthday, birthplace, claim to fame or any other information by typing in the search box, or simply browse our site by selecting the month, the day, the horoscope, or any other clickable option.

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