Helen stephens 1936 olympics

Missouri native Helen Stephens was an American runner who won two gold medals at the Olympics in Berlin and was undefeated in official competition.

Known as the Fulton Flash, Stephens had won nine Amateur Athletic Union track-and-field titles bygd the age of

She first funnen fame in when she raced against Stella Walsh, the Polish-American track star who had won the gold medal for the m women&#;s dash at the Olympic Games and was considered likely to make a repeat performance at the Olympics in the same event.

At the Olympic Games, Stephens igen raced against Walsh and won the meter dash in seconds, besting Walsh&#;s previous time of seconds. She was also a member of the U.S. 4&#;meter relay team that won a gold medal.

The U.S. grupp had a pair of meter gold medalists, with champion Elizabeth Robinson joining Stephens, but for most of the race, they trailed the Germans, who had set a world record in a kvalificerande round. The Germans dropped the baton and were disqualified,

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Look Magazine headlines and cruel accusations didn't deter Stephens. In spite of these setbacks, she paid her tuition while working as a librarian at the school and graduated from William Woods College in (William Woods was a two-year college at that time.) Eventually, Stephens sued Look Magazine and won $5,

The Fulton Flash

Although Stephens won 14 AAU track and field titles and set an Olympic record in the meter dash that stood for 24 years, she had very few opportunities to financially capitalize on her athletic success.

At the age of 19, Stephens retired from amateur sports and turned professional. This early retirement came with the benefit that she could forever boast that she never lost a footrace in amateur sports.

In , she joined Olsen's All-American Red Heads, a professional women's basketball team that traveled the country playing games in barns and gymnasiums. Many of the basketball games included exhibition track meets with Stephens as the star

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Helen Stephens

American athlete (–)

Stephens in
Full&#;name	Helen Herring Stephens[1]
Nickname	The Fulton Flash[1]
Born	February 3, [1] Fulton, Missouri, U.S.[1]
Died	January 17, () (aged&#;75)[1] St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.[1]
Height	5&#;ft 11+1&#;2&#;in (&#;cm)[1]
Weight	&#;lb (70&#;kg)[1]
Sport	Athletics
Event(s)	m, m, shot put, discus throw
Personal best(s)	yd – () m – () m – () shot put − m () discus – m ()

Helen Herring Stephens (February 3, – January 17, ) was an American athlete and a double Olympic champion in

Biography

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Stephens, nicknamed the "Fulton Flash" after her birthplace, Fulton, Missouri, was a strong athlete in sprint events—she never lost a race in her entire career—and also in weight events such as the shot put and discus throw. She won national titles in both categories.

When she was 18, Stephens participated in th