She had a legal right to be spoon fed
all her life. In fact, it would be social injustice, if she was interrogated
twice for disability benefit, right or privileges. If life was to award her a medal by circumstances, it should have been “barely
survived”.
Born prematurely in
1940 into a poor family with 22 children in rural Tennessee,
stricken by scarlet fever, frequently beaten by pneumonia
and diagnosed with polio at four years old; Wilma Glodean Rudolph had every reason not to stand on her feet, let alone run.
Even though all of her doctors assured her that it would never happen. Her
mother did everything she could to help Wilma walk, Every week,
she took Wilma on a long bus trip to a hospital to receive therapy. People encouraged her to massage Wilma’s legs
every day. She taught her other children how to do it, and Wilma's mother and
siblings and rubbed her weak legs four times a day. By the time she was eight,
Wilma was able to walk with the help of metal leg braces. Rudolph wanted to fly or at least
run to the point of flying. She declined her doctor’s advice to wear callipers all her life. After that, she used a high topped shoe to help support her foot, and played basketball every day with her brothers. Three years later, her mother came home one day to find her playing barefoot! She didn't even have to use the special shoes anymore! By the age of 12, Rudolph had put her disabilities behind her and started her dream of Olympics. A track coach encouraged Wilma to start running. She ran so well that during her senior year in high school, she qualified for the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, where she won a bronze medal in the Women’s 400 meter relay. At 16, she earned a ticket on the 1956 Olympic team and came home with a bronze medal in the 4x100-meter relay. In 1959, she qualified for the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome, Italy, by setting a world record in the 200 meter run. At the Olympics that year she won two gold medals—one each for the 100 and 200 meter races.
She rose from being a victim of a society who shunned colours, to setting the Olympic records in track and field that still stand today. She worked her God given ability to become an extra-ordinary woman. One of her inspiration
for those Olympics was the one and only, Jesse Owens, who sits ahead on the tribute fame. According to Rudolph,
the famous words “perseverance and determination” that echoed like cymbals, yet
uneasy, paid off.She then sprained her ankle but ignored the pain to help her team win another gold medal by anchoring the 400 meter relay! Just 16 years after being told by doctors that she would never walk again, Wilma was named Female Athlete of the Year by the Associated Press. Rudolph earned herself the nickname, "The Tennessee Tornado," aka, the fastest woman on earth and became the first US woman to win three gold medals in the track and field events at a single Olympic game. Wilma Rudolph retired from her running career when she was 22 years old. She went on to coach women’s track teams, encouraged and motivated other young people to reach their dreams, and even started a foundation for children. In 1994, brain and throat cancer took her life, but her influence still lives on today. One of my favorite quotes from Wilma Rudolph said, “The triumph can’t be had without the struggle. And I know what struggle is.”
This is the lesson you can learn from one of America's
greatest Olympic athletes. Even when things seem hopeless, and even if people
tell you that it's impossible, never, never give up. She died leaving
behind a legacy, four children, eight grandchildren, many nieces and nephew and
several awards. She was called to the Hall of fame in 1996 for exhibiting extraordinary
courage in her athletic performance, ability to overcome adversity, make
significant contributions to sports and serves as an inspiration and role model
to those who face challenges at all levels.
By Jason Anderson edited by Oluwamitomisin
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how does Wilma look now
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