Tidye Pickett [1] (November 3, 1914 – November 17, 1986) [2] was an American track and field athlete. She represented the United States in the 80-meter hurdles at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, becoming the first African-American woman to compete in the Olympic Games.
Tidye Pickett was born in Chicago, Illinois, on November 3, 1914. [2] Her mother was Sarah Pickett, a factory clerk, and Louis Pickett, a foundry foreman. [3] She grew up in Englewood, a Chicago neighborhood. [4]
She took up running as a schoolgirl; after competing in some local meets she caught the attention of long jumper John Brooks, who began to coach her. [4] At the 1932 United States Olympic Trials Pickett competed in the 100-meter dash, winning her heat and placing third in her semi-final; she qualified for the final, where she placed sixth. [5] :77 [6] :183–184 Pickett was named to the American Olympic team as part of the eight-woman 4 × 100 meter relay pool; she and Louise Stokes, who was also part of the relay pool, were the first African-American women to be selected for the Olympic Games, [7] but both of them were left out of the final four-woman relay lineup that ran at the Olympics. [8] [9] Pickett and Stokes suffered racial discrimination during their Olympic trip; [7] whether racism also played a role in their omission from the Olympic relay is disputed and unclear. [8] [9]
Pickett continued her running career; in 1934 she ran the opening leg on a Chicago Park District team that set an unofficial world record of 48.6 in the 4 × 110 yard relay. [10] :294 At the 1936 United States Olympic Trials she competed in the 80-meter hurdles, placing second and qualifying for the Olympics in Berlin. [5] :86 At the Olympics, Pickett survived the heats but went out in the semi-finals, falling at the second hurdle and injuring herself; [6] :227 [5] :86 she was the first African-American woman, as well as the first Illinois State University athlete, to compete in the Olympic Games. [5] :86 [11]
Pickett later became a schoolteacher, serving as principal at an elementary school in East Chicago Heights until her retirement in 1980; when she retired, the school was renamed after her. [7] She died in Chicago Heights, Illinois, on November 17, 1986. [2]
William "Willie" D. Davenport was an American sprint runner. He attended Howland High School and college at Southern University and A&M College in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He competed in the 110 m hurdles at the 1964, 1968, 1972 and 1976 Summer Olympics, winning a gold medal in 1968 and a bronze in 1976, and finishing fourth in 1972. In 1980 he took part in the Winter Olympics as a runner for the American bobsleigh team. Because of the boycott, and the quirk of participating in the Winter Olympics, he was the only U.S. track and field athlete to participate in the 1980 Olympics.
Tonja Yvette Buford-Bailey is an American former athlete who competed mainly in the 400 meter hurdles. She competed as Tonja Buford until marrying Victor Bailey on October 28, 1995. In 1982, when she was 12 years old, she met former track runner Wilma Rudolph. She attended Meadowdale High School in Dayton and the University of Illinois.
Jamaica sent a delegation to compete at the 2008 Summer Olympics, held in Beijing, People's Republic of China from August 8 to August 24, 2008. This was, by far, Jamaica's best showing at the Summer Olympics; it was the nation's largest delegation yet, and its athletes nearly doubled its total gold medal count in addition to breaking the nation's record for number of medals earned in a single games. Jamaica's appearance at Beijing was its fifteenth consecutive appearance and appearance as an independent nation, although it had previously participated in four other games as a British colony and as part of the West Indies Federation. In the 29 events that included Jamaican athletes, there were 26 cases in which a Jamaican athlete or relay progressed to a final round. Usain Bolt won three of Jamaica's six gold medals at Beijing, breaking an Olympic and world record in all three of the events in which he participated. Shelly-Ann Fraser led an unprecedented Jamaican sweep of the medals in the Women's 100 m. Female sprinter Veronica Campbell-Brown carried Jamaica's flag at the ceremonies.
Queen Quedith Claye née Harrison is an American hurdler and sprinter who competed in the 400 metres hurdles at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Queen is a meet director for Virginia's Best Track and Field Classic - a 2017 version VHSL meet hosted in Richmond, Virginia started in 2017.
Linetta A. Wilson was a 1996 Olympic gold medalist in the women's 4x400 meter relay for the United States. She competed in the opening round with Rochelle Stevens, Kim Graham, and Maicel Malone and was replaced by Jearl Miles in the Final.
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Mamie Annette Rallins was an American hurdler. She competed at the 1968 and 1972 Summer Olympics and later coached many future Olympians.
Dalilah Muhammad is an American track and field athlete who specializes in the 400 metres hurdles. She won the gold medal at the 2019 World Championships, setting the current world record with a time of 52.16 seconds. She was also the 2013, 2016, and 2017 American national champion. At the 2016 Summer Olympics, she won gold in the 400 metres hurdles. Muhammad is only the second female 400 meter hurdler in history, after Sally Gunnell, to have won the Olympic and World titles and broken the world record.
Ashley Spencer is an American track and field athlete who competes in the 400 metres and the 400 metres hurdles. In the 400m hurdles, she is the 2016 Olympic bronze medalist. In the 400m, she is the 2012 World Junior Champion and the 2016 World Indoor silver medalist. She is coached by 1996 Olympic bronze medalist Tonya Buford-Bailey.
Floyd George Smart was an American track and field athlete. Smart was United States champion in the 440 yd hurdles in 1917 and 1919 and in the long jump in 1919.
Kristi Castlin is an American track and field athlete who specializes in the 100 metres hurdles. Her personal best for the event is 12.50 seconds, set on July 8, 2016 during the finals of the 2016 United States Olympic Trials, in which she qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympics by placing 2nd. She was the 2012 American champion in the indoor 60 metres hurdles and represented the United States at the 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships. She shares the world record for the shuttle hurdle relay, with her time of 50.78 seconds set in 2013.
The 1932 United States Olympic Trials for track and field were held on July 15 and July 16, 1932 and decided the United States team for the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. The Trials for men and women were held separately; men competed in Stanford Stadium in Stanford, California, while women competed in Dyche Stadium in Evanston, Illinois. Both meetings also served as the annual United States outdoor track and field championships. For the first time, only the top three athletes in each event qualified for the Olympics; until 1928, every nation had been allowed four entrants per event.
The 1928 United States Olympic Trials for track and field were held between July 3 and July 7, 1928 and decided the United States team for the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam. For the first time, women's track and field was part of the Olympic program. The Trials for men and women were held separately; men competed at Harvard Stadium in Cambridge, Massachusetts on July 6 and July 7, while women competed at City Field in Newark, New Jersey on July 4. Three of the men's events were contested in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania between July 3 and July 5.
The 1936 United States Olympic Trials for track and field were held in July 1936 and decided the United States team for the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin. The Trials for men and women were held separately; men's events were held at Randall's Island Stadium in New York City on July 11 and July 12, while women competed at Brown Stadium in Providence, Rhode Island on July 4. The top three athletes in each event qualified for the Olympic Games. The women's meeting also served as the annual outdoor track and field championships of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU); the men's AAU championships were held separately a week before the Olympic Trials.
Harold William Manning was an American long-distance runner. He held the American record in the men's 3000-meter steeplechase from 1934 to 1952 and briefly held the world best in 1936. He represented the United States in the steeplechase at the 1936 Summer Olympics, placing fifth.
Glen Wilson Dawson was an American runner. He represented the United States in the men's 3000-meter steeplechase at the 1932 and 1936 Summer Olympics, qualifying for the final both times.
John William Brooks was an American long jumper. He competed in the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, placing seventh in the long jump.
Anne Marie Vrana O'Brien was an American sprinter. She represented the United States at the 1928 Summer Olympics in the 100 meters and at the 1936 Summer Olympics in the 80-meter hurdles. In 1932 she equaled the 80-meter hurdles world record, but fell at the Olympic Trials and missed the Olympics.
Sydney Michelle McLaughlin is an American hurdler and sprinter who competed for the University of Kentucky before turning professional. She won the silver medal at the 2019 World Championships in the 400 m hurdles, setting her new personal best of 52.23 seconds. McLaughlin holds a number of age group world bests and won the Gatorade National Girls Athlete of the Year trophy for both 2015–16 and 2016–17. She placed third in the 400 metres hurdles at the 2016 United States Olympic Trials, qualifying for the 2016 Summer Olympics. McLaughlin has a personal best of 50.07 in the 400m.
Louise Mae Stokes Fraser was an American track and field athlete.