# Jesse Owens Jesse Owens achieved one of the most dramatic performances in Olympic history, winning four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Games in front of Adolf Hitler, directly refuting Nazi ideology of Aryan racial superiority. He set world records in the 100m, 200m, long jump, and 4x100m relay, and his long jump record stood for 25 years. His courage and athletic brilliance made him one of the most important figures in 20th-century sport. ## Quick Facts - **Born:** September 12, 1913 - **Birthplace:** Oakville, United States - **Nationality:** American - **Occupation:** Track & Field / Sprinting & Long Jump - **Category:** Athletes - **Also Known As:** The Buckeye Bullet ## Early life and education Jesse Owens, originally known as J. C., was the youngest of ten children (three girls and seven boys) born to Henry Cleveland Owens (1881–1942), a sharecropper, and Mary Emma Fitzgerald (1876–1940) in Oakville, Alabama, on September 12, 1913. He was the grandson of a slave. At the age of nine, he and his family moved to Cleveland, Ohio for better opportunities as part of the Great Migration (1910–70) when millions of African Americans left the segregated and rural South for the urban and industrial North. When his new teacher asked his name to enter in her roll book, he said "J. C.", but because of his strong Southern accent, she thought he said "Jesse". The name stuck, and he was known as Jesse Owens for the rest of his life. In his younger years, Owens took different menial jobs in his spare time: he delivered groceries, loaded freight cars, and worked in a shoe repair shop while his father and older brother worked at a steel mill. During this period, Owens realized that he had a passion for running. Throughout his life, Owens attributed the success of his athletic career to the encouragement of Charles Riley, his junior high school track coach at Fairmount Junior High School. Since Owens worked after school, Riley allowed him to practice before school instead. Owens and Minnie Ruth Solomon (1915–2001) met at Fairmont Junior High School in Cleveland when he was 15 and she was 13. They dated steadily through high school. Ruth gave birth to their first daughter Gloria in 1932. They married on July 5, 1935, and had two more daughters together: Marlene, born in 1937, and Beverly, born in 1940. They remained married until his death in 1980. Owens first came to national attention when he was a student of East Technical High School in Cleveland; he equaled the world record of 9.4 seconds in the 100 yards (91 m) dash, broke the national high school record with 20.7 seconds in the 220 yards (201 m) dash, and long-jumped .mw-parser-output .frac{white-space:nowrap}.mw-parser-output .frac .num,.mw-parser-output .frac .den{font-size:80%;line-height:0;vertical-align:super}.mw-parser-output .frac .den{vertical-align:sub}.mw-parser-output .sr-only{border:0;clip:rect(0,0,0,0);clip-path:polygon(0px 0px,0px 0px,0px 0px);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px}24 feet 9+1⁄2 inches (7.56 m) at the 1933 National High School Championship in Chicago. His 100-yard dash remained the national high school record until 1967, while his 200-yard dash held the national record for 20 years. ## Career Ohio State University Owens attended Ohio State University after his father found employment, which ensured that the family could be supported. Affectionately known as the "Buckeye Bullet" and under the coaching of Larry Snyder, Owens won a record eight individual NCAA championships, four each in 1935 and 1936. His career total of eight individual NCAA titles remains the most, despite only two years of Varsity competition—which included an undefeated junior year in 1936 where he won all 42 events he entered. Though Owens enjoyed athletic success, he had to live off campus with other African-American athletes. When he traveled with the team, Owens was restricted to ordering carry-out or eating at "blacks-only" restaurants. Similarly, he had to stay at "blacks-only" hotels. Owens did not receive a scholarship for his efforts, so he continued to work part-time jobs to pay for school. Day of days May 25, 1935, is remembered as the day when Jesse Owens won four events and established six world records in athletics at the Big Ten Championships. On that day, Owens battled through a lower back injury and set five world records and tied a sixth in a span of 45 minutes from 3:15–4 p.m. during the Big Ten meet at Ferry Field in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He equaled the world record for the 100-yard dash (9.4 seconds) (not to be confused with the 100-meter dash), and set world records in the long jump (26 feet 8+1⁄4 inches or 8.13 metres, a world record that would last for 25 years); 220 yards (201.2 m) sprint (20.3 seconds); and 220-yard low hurdles (22.6 seconds, becoming the first to break 23 seconds). Both 220-yard records had also beaten the metric records for 200 meters (flat and hurdles), which counted as two additional world records from the same performances. In 2005, University of Central Florida professor of sports history Richard C. Crepeau chose these wins on one day as the most impressive athletic achievement since 1850. 1936 Big Ten Championships At the 1936 Big Ten Championships, Owens dominated the competition, winning the long jump, 100-yard dash, 220-yard dash, and 100-yard low hurdles. With these victories, he concluded his Big Ten Championship career undefeated—nine titles in nine events. USA Track and Field Championships At the 1934 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships, Owens captured the long jump gold with a world-record leap of 25 ft 3+1⁄8 in (7.699 m). Two years later, at his final appearance at the Outdoor Championships in 1936, he shattered the long jump world record once again with a remarkable jump of 26 feet, 8¼ inches. That same meet, he also set a new championship record in the 100 meters, clocking in at 10.4 seconds. Over the course of his career at these championships, Owens amassed a total of six gold medals—five in the long jump and one in the 100 meters. 1936 Berlin Summer Olympics Owens competing in the long jump at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin On December 4, 1935, NAACP Secretary Walter Francis White wrote a letter ## Life after the Olympics Owens on a 1971 UAE stamp Owens was quoted saying the secret behind his success was, "I let my feet spend as little time on the ground as possible. From the air, fast down, and from the ground, fast up." After the 1936 Olympics, Avery Brundage organized a grueling European exhibition tour to profit the AAU and USOC, both of which he led. Owens, exhausted but pressured to compete, ran multiple races across Europe with little rest, food, or support. Despite such treatment, Brundage continued booking events across Scandinavia. Owens, drained and frustrated, eventually refused to continue. Brundage retaliated by having Owens permanently suspended from amateur competition which immediately ended his career. Owens was angry and stated that "A fellow desires something for himself." As Ruth Owens later recalled, "That Avery Brundage feller tore a big hole inside Jesse." Owens argued that the racial discrimination he had faced throughout his athletic career, such as not being eligible for scholarships in college and therefore being unable to take classes between training and working to pay his way, meant he had to give up on amateur athletics in pursuit of financial gain elsewhere. After returning to the United States following his Olympic success, racism back home led to difficulty earning a living despite his international acclaim. Owens struggled to find work and took on menial jobs as a gas station attendant, playground janitor, and manager of a dry cleaning firm and at times resorted to racing against motorbikes, cars, trucks and horses for a cash prize. People say it was degrading for an Olympic champion to run against a horse, but what was I supposed to do? I had four gold medals, but you can't eat four gold medals. Jesse Owens had broken racial barriers and done things that no other man had done before him. Yet after he returned home from the Olympic Games, he was not greeted with the glory and praise that White Olympians had received. Owens stated, "No one had offered me a job" and "I had jumped farther and run faster than any man ever had before, and it left me with next to nothing." Jesse wasn't being treated like an Olympic gold medalist but instead, just like any other African American at that time. Another quote said "So I sold myself into a new kind of slavery. I was no longer a proud man who had won four Olympic gold medals. I was a spectacle, a freak who made his living by competing—dishonestly—against dumb animals." Despite his athletic triumphs, he was not spared from poverty and was forced to take on degrading work just to afford basic necessities. Owens bridged the gap between racial disenfranchisement and opportunity. His Olympic medals showed the Jim Crow South and the world what was possible when African Americans were given a fair chance. Though many resisted racial integration, Owens served as a key figure for the beginning building blocks of the civil rights movement. Owens was banned from attending amateur events to enhance his ## Legacy Waxwork of Owens at Madame Tussauds, London Owens is widely considered one of the greatest athletes in the history of track and field. Over the course of his career, he earned nine Big Ten titles, eight NCAA titles, and six USA Track & Field titles. His international legacy was cemented at the Olympics, where he won gold in all four events he entered—each in Olympic record time–delivering a powerful rebuttal to Adolf Hitler's ideology of Aryan supremacy and dealt a symbolic blow to the Nazi regime's racist propaganda. Several of his world records endured for decades, including his long jump record, which lasted 25 years, and his 100-meter dash record, which stood for 20. Following his athletic career, Owens experienced difficulties securing financial stability, a circumstance attributed in part to limited opportunities available to African American athletes during that period. Although he was celebrated for his Olympic accomplishments, he was not invited to the White House or formally recognized by the U.S. government at the time. Later in life, his contributions to sport and society were acknowledged through various honors, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1976 and the Congressional Gold Medal posthumously in 1990. "Giants like Jesse Owens show us why politics will never defeat the Olympic spirit. His character, his achievements have continued to inspire Americans as they did the whole world in 1936." — Gerald Ford Owens has been honored with schools, streets, and athletic facilities named after him—including Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium—and his life has inspired documentaries, books, and the biopic Race. Notably, the documentary Olympic Pride, American Prejudice also highlights his story as part of a broader examination of the 18 Black American athletes who competed in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. He is also a member of several halls of fame, including the U.S. Olympic and National Track and Field Hall of Fame. The dormitory that Owens occupied during the Berlin Olympics has been fully restored into a living museum, with pictures of his accomplishments at the games, and a letter (intercepted by the Gestapo) from a fan urging him not to shake hands with Hitler. ## Athletic achievements Sources: Fairmount Junior High School Annual Cleveland Athletic Club Indoor Meet at Cleveland Public Hall 3× High jump champion (1928–1930) 40-yard low hurdles champion (1929) 40-yard dash champion (1929) East Technical High School Mansfield Interscholastic Relays 2× Long jump champion (1932, 1933) 100-yard dash champion (1933 tied H.S. record) 220-yard dash champion (1933) 4 × 220 yard relay champion (1933) Intraschool Meet in Cleveland (June 3, 1933) 100 metres champion 200 metres champion Long jump champion (H.S. record) 4 × 220 yard relay champion OHSAA State Championships 2× State Champions – East Technical HS (1932, 1933) 3× Long jump champion (1931–1933 H.S. record) 2× 100-yard dash champion (1932, 1933) 2× 220-yard dash champion (1932, 1933 H.S. record) 2× 4 × 220-yard relay champion (1932, 1933) National High School Championships(June 17, 1933) National Champions – East Technical HS 100-yard dash champion (tied World record"}]]}'>WR) 220-yard dash champion (H.S. record) Long jump champion Ohio State Fair (August 31, 1933) 100-yard dash champion College – Ohio State University West Virginia Indoor Relays (February 10, 1934) 60 metres champion (tied World record"}]]}'>WR) Freshman Dual Meet vs. Indiana (February 20, 1934) 60-yard dash champion Long jump champion Freshman Dual Meet vs. Michigan (February 26, 1934) 60-yard dash champion (tied World record"}]]}'>WR) Long jump champion Freshman Dual Meet vs. Chicago (March 3, 1934) 60-yard dash champion Long jump champion AAU Meet in Cleveland (March 24, 1934) 50-yard dash champion (tied World record"}]]}'>WR) City of Cincinnati AAU Indoor Meet (March 31, 1934) 50-yard dash champion (tied World record"}]]}'>WR) Long jump champion Freshman Dual Meet vs. Purdue (May 4, 1934) 100-yard dash champion 220-yard dash champion Long jump champion Freshman Dual Meet vs. Michigan (May 11, 1934) 100-yard dash champion 220-yard dash champion Long jump champion Annual Intramural Meet (May 22, 1934) 100-yard dash champion 220-yard dash champion Long jump champion Big Ten Freshman Championships (May 26, 1934) 100-yard dash champion 220-yard dash champion Long jump champion Millrose Games (February 2, 1935) 60-yard dash champion Dual Meet vs. Indiana (February 9, 1935) 60-yard dash champion Long jump champion Dual Meet vs. Illinois (February 15, 1935) 60-yard dash champion 70-yard high hurdles champion 75-yard low hurdles champion Long jump champion Dual Meet vs. Michigan (March 2, 1935) 65-yard low hurdles champion St. Louis Relays (April 5, 1935) 50-yard dash champion (tied World record"}]]}'>WR) Drake Relays (April 26, 1935) 100-yard dash champion Long jump champion (National record"}]]}'>NR) Dual Meet vs. Notre Dame (May 4, 1935) 100-yard dash champion 220-yard dash champion Long jump champion Dual Meet vs. Michigan (May 11, 1935) 100-yard dash champion 220-yard dash champion 220-yard low hurdles champion Long jump champion Quad Meet vs. Wisconsin, Northweste ## Timeline ### 1850 — Crepeau chose these wins on one day as the most impressive athletic achievement... Crepeau chose these wins on one day as the most impressive athletic achievement since 1850 ### 1876 — C., was the youngest of ten children (three girls and seven boys) born to Henry... C., was the youngest of ten children (three girls and seven boys) born to Henry Cleveland Owens (1881–1942), a sharecropper, and Mary Emma Fitzgerald (1876–1940) in Oakville, Alabama, on September 12, 1913 ### 1910 — At the age of nine, he and his family moved to Cleveland, Ohio for better... At the age of nine, he and his family moved to Cleveland, Ohio for better opportunities as part of the Great Migration (1910–70) when millions of African Americans left the segregated and rural South for the urban and industrial North ### 1913 — Born in Oakville James Cleveland 'Jesse' Owens born in Oakville, Alabama. ### 1915 — Owens and Minnie Ruth Solomon (1915–2001) met at Fairmont Junior High School in... Owens and Minnie Ruth Solomon (1915–2001) met at Fairmont Junior High School in Cleveland when he was 15 and she was 13 ### 1928 — Sources: Fairmount Junior High School Annual Cleveland Athletic Club Indoor... Sources: Fairmount Junior High School Annual Cleveland Athletic Club Indoor Meet at Cleveland Public Hall 3× High jump champion (1928–1930) 40-yard low hurdles champion (1929) 40-yard dash champion (1929) East Technical High School Mansfield Interscholastic Relays 2× Long jump champion (1932, 1933) ### 1931 — record) 4 × 220 yard relay champion OHSAA State Championships 2× State... record) 4 × 220 yard relay champion OHSAA State Championships 2× State Champions – East Technical HS (1932, 1933) 3× Long jump champion (1931–1933 H.S ### 1932 — record) 2× 4 × 220-yard relay champion (1932, 1933) National High School... record) 2× 4 × 220-yard relay champion (1932, 1933) National High School Championships(June 17, 1933) National Champions – East Technical HS 100-yard dash champion (tied World record"}]]}'>WR) 220-yard dash champion (H.S ### 1933 — record) Long jump champion Ohio State Fair (August 31, 1933) 100-yard dash... record) Long jump champion Ohio State Fair (August 31, 1933) 100-yard dash champion College – Ohio State University West Virginia Indoor Relays (February 10, 1934) 60 metres champion (tied World record"}]]}'>WR) Freshman Dual Meet vs ### 1935 — Day of Days Sets three world records and ties one in 45 minutes at the Big Ten Championships. ### 1936 — Berlin Olympics: 4 Gold Medals Wins four golds at the Berlin Olympics, defying Hitler's Aryan supremacy narrative. ### 1980 — Death Dies at age 66. Posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. --- Source: https://peoplebio.info/p/jesse-owens