In the United States, February is Black History Month. Black American athletes have made huge contributions throughout Olympic history. Jesse Owens proved Adolf Hitler’s white supremacy theory wrong by winning four gold medals at Berlin 1936. Wyomia Tyus became the first person (man or woman) to win back-to-back 100m gold medals. Speed skater Shani Davis broke barriers by becoming the first Black person from any nation to win an individual gold medal in the Winter Olympics. The list goes on.
Black athletes have achieved Olympic greatness, but not without big roadblocks in the way. The podium protest by Tommie Smith and John Carlos at Mexico City 1968 is just one glimpse into the way that Black athletes were treated differently in the United States.
Several significant moments in Olympic history and Black history cross paths. We’ve covered a few of them on the podcast. Here are some episodes to help you learn more:
Movie Club: The Fire Inside
In our first Movie Club discussion for 2025, we cover the 2024 biopic The Fire Inside. It tells the story of Olympic boxer Claressa Shields and her journey to winning her first Olympic gold medal at London 2012. The movie covers Shields’ early life in Flint, Michigan, an incredibly poor city that fell on hard times when General Motors left town. Claressa and her family were caught in a cycle of poverty but Claressa showed talent as a boxer. The movie also goes beyond her first victory to show what happens when the Games are over. Unfortunately, Claressa is one of the many Olympic athletes who do not see a financial windfall after the Games.
Author Aime Alley Card and Olympic Legends The Tigerbelles
The legendary Tennessee State Tigerbelles are one of those teams that triumphed throughout many Olympics, even with the odds stacked against them. On this episode we talk with Aime Alley Card, author of The Tigerbelles: Olympic Legends from Tennessee State. Aime’s book covers the early years of the Tigerbelles through the Rome 1960 Olympics. Through meticulous research and interviews, Aime captures the teammates’ voices to not just tell the story of the team, its hard work, and its Olympic triumphs, but also give us insight into how these women grew up and the segregation they dealt with at college and traveling around the country for meets.
Movie Club: Race
Is there any more famous story of an athlete standing up against racism than Jess Owens at the 1936 Berlin Olympics? The 2016 Jesse Owens biopic Race tells that story and details the discrimination Owens faced in the United States even as its most celebrated Olympic champion. Gold medals did not protect Owens from segregation and systematic racism.
Book Club: Rome 1960
The Rome 1960 was a game changer in many ways, and some American Black athletes became stars of the Games. Standout performances include Wilma Rudolph’s golden reign on the track and Cassius Clay’s (now Muhammad Ali) great win in the boxing ring, en route to becoming “The Greatest.”
Harry Blutstein on Mexico City 1968
The most famous protest at the Olympics came in Mexico City in 1968 when Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their black-gloved fists on the podium, immortalized in the iconic photograph. What is the real story behind that moment? Author Harry Blutstein takes a deep dive into that, and so much more in his book Games of Discontent: Protests, Boycotts, and Politics at the 1968 Mexico Olympics.
Cat Ariail on Passing the Baton
Dr. Cat Ariail, women’s sports historian, and author of Passing the Baton: Black Women Track Stars and American Identity, gives us insight into how women rose up to be great Olympians and pave the way for other Black athletes to achieve their goals. Ariail’s book will introduce you to legends like:
- Alice Coachman, the 1st female Black American gold medalist
- Mae Faggs, 1st US female to compete in 3 Olympics
- Wyomia Tyus, 2x Olympian, the 1st ever athlete to win back-to-back golds in the 100m
- Wilma Rudolph, 2x Olympian, star of Rome 1960, 3 gold medals, 1 bronze medal
- Willye White, the first 5x Olympian
- Earlene Brown, 3x Olympian, 1st American women to medal in shot put
Madeline Manning Mims’ Olympics
Madeline Manning Mims has the distinction of being America’s first (and still only) female athlete to win the gold medal in the 800m run, which she won at the Mexico City 1968 Olympics. She added a silver in the 4x400m relay at Munich 1972, competed at Montreal 1976, and was selected for the Moscow 1980 team that stayed home due to the US boycott of those Games. We talk with this trail-blazer about her experiences at three Olympics, all of which paved the way for her role as a chaplain at several Olympic Games.
We have also had incredible interviews with Olympic hurdles champion Dawn Harper-Nelson, and 2x silver medalist Kenny Bednarek,
Black Americans have also brought great sporting moments to the Paralympics. We’ve talked with Paralympic bronze medalist Jamal Hill, 2x Paralympian John Register, and 2x gold medalist Jaydin Blackwell, plus many more amazing African-American champions. Take a listen and celebrate Black History Month!
–Alison Brown, edited by Jill Jaracz