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theHandpuppet

(19,964 posts)
Tue Jul 15, 2014, 06:12 PM Jul 2014

US black female gold Olympian Alice Coachman Davis dies

Source: BBC News

The first black woman to win an Olympic gold medal, Alice Coachman Davis, has died in the US at the age of 90.

A US track and field legend, she set a new Olympic record, winning gold in the high jump at the 1948 London Games.

She died in hospital near her home in Albany, Georgia, on Monday, three months after suffering a stroke.

Ms Coachman's athletic achievements pre-dated the civil rights era, which meant she was barred from public sports facilities because of her colour.



Read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-28309527



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US black female gold Olympian Alice Coachman Davis dies (Original Post) theHandpuppet Jul 2014 OP
Heard this early this morning BumRushDaShow Jul 2014 #1

BumRushDaShow

(127,270 posts)
1. Heard this early this morning
Tue Jul 15, 2014, 07:08 PM
Jul 2014

Believe it or not, I lived near her coach (who lived in Philly), and his wife penned a biography of her called "Jumping Over the Moon: a Biography of Alice Coachman".

Good biographical info on her here in an old Phila. Inquirer article - http://articles.philly.com/1996-07-04/entertainment/25620511_1_olympics-victory-alice-coachman-hardscrabble-childhood

R.I.P. and condolences to her family. So many black women were inspired by her efforts and have continued to excel at the Olympics.

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