Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Located on Fred Taylor Drive, north of Lane Avenue, Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium is the newest addition to The Ohio State University Department of Athletics' aggressive campaign to upgrade and build state-of-the-art facilities for competition (1). The Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium is a 10,000 seat facility that is currently used by the track, soccer, and lacrosse teams of The Ohio State University. Jesse Owens was a track star while a student at OSU and he also won four Olympic gold medals.
Images
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
James Cleveland Owens was born in 1913 in Alabama. His family
moved to Cleveland, Ohio when he was a boy. When he was in about third grade
his teacher asked him his name. He responded "J. C." Because of his
southern accent she mistakenly thought he said Jesse. He went to East Tech high
school in Cleveland and equaled the world record of 9.4 seconds in the 100 yard
dash. He attended college at Ohio State. On the track team there he won a
record of eight individual NCAA championships, four in 1935 and four in 1936(1)
At the Olympics, he competed and won gold in the following: the 100 meter dash,
the 200 meter dash, 400 meter relay, and the long jump. While Hitler preached
Aryan supeiority, Owens credited the help of his German opponent, Luz Long,
with giving him advice on how to not foul out of the long jump trials. Owens
had fouled twice and Long suggested laying a towel a foot from the foul line to
help him jump sooner. He and Long went on to be friends (1)
Even with his athletic abilities, as a black man Jesse had always faced
discrimination and difficulties. He tried several businesses and coaching. He
later found success as a speaker. He died of lung cancer in 1980 (1)