A young boy who delivered groceries and worked in a shoe-repair shop The winner of four Olympic gold medals in track and field One of the greatest athletes of the twentieth century
At the 1936 Berlin Summer Olympics, track and field star Jesse Owens ran himself straight into international glory by winning four gold medals. But the life of Jesse Owens is much more than a sports story. Born in rural Alabama under the oppressive Jim Crow laws, Owens’s family suffered many hardships. As a boy he worked several jobs like delivering groceries and working in a shoe repair shop to make ends meet. But Owens defied the odds to become a sensational student athlete, eventually running track for Ohio State. He was chosen to compete in the Summer Olympics in Nazi Germany where Adolf Hitler was promoting the idea of “Aryan superiority.” Owens’s winning streak at the games humiliated Hitler and crushed the myth of racial supremacy once and for all.
About Who Was Jesse Owens?
At the 1936 Berlin Summer Olympics, track and field star Jesse Owens ran himself straight into international glory by winning four gold medals. But the life of Jesse Owens is much more than a sports story. Born in rural Alabama under the oppressive Jim Crow laws, Owens’s family suffered many hardships. As a boy he worked several jobs like delivering groceries and working in a shoe repair shop to make ends meet. But Owens defied the odds to become a sensational student athlete, eventually running track for Ohio State. He was chosen to compete in the Summer Olympics in Nazi Germany where Adolf Hitler was promoting the idea of “Aryan superiority.” Owens’s winning streak at the games humiliated Hitler and crushed the myth of racial supremacy once and for all.
About Who Was Jesse Owens?
At the 1936 Berlin Summer Olympics, track and field star Jesse Owens ran himself straight into international glory by winning four gold medals. But the life of Jesse Owens is much more than a sports story. Born in rural Alabama under the oppressive Jim Crow laws, Owens’s family suffered many hardships. As a boy he worked several jobs like delivering groceries and working in a shoe repair shop to make ends meet. But Owens defied the odds to become a sensational student athlete, eventually running track for Ohio State. He was chosen to compete in the Summer Olympics in Nazi Germany where Adolf Hitler was promoting the idea of “Aryan superiority.” Owens’s winning streak at the games humiliated Hitler and crushed the myth of racial supremacy once and for all.
James Buckley has written more than 100 books for children, including Curious About Pluto, The Moon, and Home Address: ISS, The… More about James Buckley, Jr.
About Who HQ
Who HQ is your headquarters for history. The Who HQ team is always working to provide simple and clear answers to… More about Who HQ
About James Buckley, Jr.
James Buckley has written more than 100 books for children, including Curious About Pluto, The Moon, and Home Address: ISS, The… More about James Buckley, Jr.
About Who HQ
Who HQ is your headquarters for history. The Who HQ team is always working to provide simple and clear answers to… More about Who HQ
About James Buckley, Jr.
James Buckley has written more than 100 books for children, including Curious About Pluto, The Moon, and Home Address: ISS, The International Space Station, for the Penguin-Smithsonian line.
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