Althea Gibson is a legend in tennis. Gibson was the first ever African American woman to take on any major tennis tournament. In 1945 and 1946, Althea Gibson won the New York State Negro girls’ championship. Gibson also happened to be the best women’s tennis player in the world in 1957 and 1958. She has won the most prizes in tennis. She is such an inspiration to many African American tennis players today, and has probably made an impact on some professional players too. Althea Gibson broke the color line when she played at Forest Hill in 1950.
In college, Wilma was the star of her track team, and she won all of her races. However, Rudolph faced some obstacles. Wilma suffered from the disease polio at the age of four. Because of this, she lost the use of her left leg. She was in a metal brace for several years because of her crippled leg. Since she had such a big family, the members of her family were always there to help. They massaged her injured leg weekly to help the limb gain strength again. She was the first African American woman to hold the American flag in the Olympics ceremony. In 1960, Wilma Rudolph was the U.S. Female Athlete of the year. She died on November 12, 1994, and in honor of her death, she received the National Women's Hall of Fame award.
Alice Coachman could jump up to six feet in the high jump! At 16, Coachman beat the high jump and the collegiate high jump records, and she started preparing for the 1940 Olympics. Sadly, her dreams to be in the 1940 Olympic games were crushed because of World War II. However, Alice Coachman was the first African American to win a gold medal at the London Olympics in 1948. When she returned from the Olympics, the mayor of her town wouldn’t touch her, and she wasn’t allowed to speak at her ceremony because of her skin color. Before she died she spoke to young African American athletes to never give up because of the color of their skin. Coachman is one of the 100 american athletes to be honored for the Centennial Olympic games in Atlanta Georgia (1996).
Lynette Woodard made history when she joined the Harlem Globetrotters in 1985. Woodard was the first women to be selected to play for the Harlem Globetrotters. She signed to play for the WNBA that had just been created in 1997. She played two seasons in that league. Lynette scored the highest points in NCCAA women's basketball history (3,649 points). After she graduated she went to Europe to play two years in the Italian women’s league. In that league she was the highest scoring player. In 1977, she was recognized as an All-American.
Gabby Douglas was the first African-American to win a gold medal in the women's individual all-around gymnastics event, in the 2012 London Olympics. She was only 16 years old when she won herself a gold medal. The sport means so much to her and so does God. Before every routine, Gabby says a prayer. Not only did she earn a gold medal as an All-Around Olympian, but she was a part of the American gymnastics team that also won a gold medal in the Olympics.