Growing Up
Wilma Glodean Rudolph was prematurely born the 20th child of 22 to Ed and Blanche Rudolph on June 23, 1940 in Clarksville Tennessee. She was confined to a leg brace and the doctors said she would never be able to walk or run. Before Wilma was six years old, she was diagnosed with pneumonia, spotted fever, and polio. At the age of twelve, she was able to walk without her leg brace and this was just the beginning.
Wilma after the 1960 Olympics.
Wilma was just a normal kid that attended the local all blacks Clarksville Tennessee High School and was involved on the basketball team. In high school, Wilma qualified for the 1956 Olympic Games in Australia and won a bronze medal for the 4 x 100-meter relay which foreshadowed her 1960 Olympic games in Rome. In Italy, she won the 100 meters, the 200 meters, and the sprint relay. These achievements later inspired her to run track at the University of Tennessee State (TSU) in the 1960's.
Wilma's second race in the 1960 Olympics.
After winning at the Rome Olympics, she received a homecoming parade in Clarksville; she only agreed to attend if the parade was desegregated. After retiring from her Olympic career she found success in teaching and public speaking. In 1980, Wilma was inducted into the US Olympic Hall of Fame. She later created the Wilma Rudolph Foundation which helped other athletes that struggled with similar illnesses. At the age of 54, Wilma was diagnosed with severe brain cancer and died shortly after in 1994.
Wilma in 1960 becoming a teacher.