American athlete
Helen Stephens
![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/96/Helen_Stephens_1936.jpg/220px-Helen_Stephens_1936.jpg) Stephens in 1936
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Full name
| Helen Herring Stephens
[1]
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Nickname
| The Fulton Flash
[1]
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Born
| February 3, 1918
[1]
Fulton, Missouri
, U.S.
[1]
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Died
| January 17, 1994
(1994-01-17)
(aged 75)
[1]
St. Louis, Missouri
, U.S.
[1]
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Height
| 5 ft
11
+
1
⁄
2
in (182 cm)
[1]
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Weight
| 154 lb (70 kg)
[1]
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Sport
| Athletics
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Event(s)
| 100 m, 200 m, shot put, discus throw
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Personal
best(s)
| 100 yd ? 10.4 (1935)
100 m ? 11.5 (1936)
200 m ? 24.1 (1936)
shot put ?13.70 m (1937)
discus ? 39.50 m (1936)
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Helen Herring Stephens
(February 3, 1918 ? January 17, 1994) was an American
athlete
and a double
Olympic
champion in 1936.
Biography
[
edit
]
Stephens, nicknamed the "Fulton Flash" after her birthplace,
Fulton, Missouri
, was a strong athlete in sprint events?she never lost a race in her entire career?and also in weight events such as the
shot put
and
discus throw
. She won national titles in both categories.
When she was 18, Stephens participated in the
1936 Summer Olympics
. There she won the
100 m
final, beating reigning champion and
world record
holder,
Stanisława Walasiewicz
(aka Stella Walsh) of
Poland
.
[2]
[3]
Stephen's time of 11.5 s was below the
world record
, but was not recognized because a strong tailwind was blowing at the time of the race. Next, Stephens anchored the American
4 × 100 m relay
team that won the Olympic title after the leading
German
team dropped its baton.
Stephens is quoted by Olympic historian, David Wallechinsky, about her post-race experience with
Adolf Hitler
.
[3]
"He comes in and gives me the Nazi salute. I gave him a good, old-fashioned Missouri handshake," she said. "Once more Hitler goes for the jugular vein. He gets hold of my fanny and begins to squeeze and pinch, and hug me up. And he said: 'You're a true Aryan type. You should be running for Germany.' So after he gave me the once over and a full massage, he asked me if I'd like to spend the weekend in Berchtesgaden." Stephens refused.
[3]
[4]
Stephens retired from athletics shortly after the games and played professional
baseball
and
softball
. She attended
William Woods University
, Fulton High School, and Middle River School in Fulton. She was later inducted into the
William Woods Owls
Hall of Fame, described as "the most well-known athlete in Fulton’s history."
[5]
From 1938 to 1952, she was the owner and manager of her own semi-professional
basketball
team; she was the first woman to own and manage a semi-professional basketball team.
[6]
She was employed for many years in the Research Division of the U.S. Aeronautical Chart and Information Service (later, a part of the
Defense Mapping Agency
) in
St. Louis
, Missouri.
Her longtime partner was Mabel O. Robbe (nee Wires), a dietician at
Francis Shimer College
.
[7]
[8]
In 1993, she was inducted into the
National Women's Hall of Fame
.
[9]
She died in Saint Louis at age 75.
[10]
Gender
[
edit
]
At the 1936 Olympics, it was suggested that both Stephens and
Stanisława Walasiewicz
were, in fact, male.
[11]
The
International Olympic Committee
performed a physical check on Stephens and concluded that she was a woman.
[12]
Bibliography
[
edit
]
- The Life of Helen Stephens ? The Fulton Flash
, by Sharon Kinney Hanson, 2004.
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
"Helen Stephens"
.
sports-reference.com
. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from
the original
on May 23, 2015
. Retrieved
June 6,
2015
.
- ^
Alan Gould (December 15, 1936).
"Helen Stephens is best athlete: Missouri's Olympic star wins Associated Press honor"
.
Lawrence Journal-World
. Retrieved
August 23,
2016
.
- ^
a
b
c
Gillon, Doug.
"Hitler pinched my bottom"
.
The Herald
. Retrieved
October 7,
2008
.
- ^
Kinney-Hanson, Sharon (2004). The life of Helen Stephens: the Fulton Flash. Southern Illinois University Press.
ISBN
0-8093-2559-4
.
- ^
"The "Fulton Flash" Will Be Inducted Into the William Woods Hall of Fame"
.
William Woods University Athletics
. April 17, 2013
. Retrieved
May 18,
2024
.
- ^
"Did you know?"
.
Mc Cook Gazette
. November 7, 2005
. Retrieved
August 23,
2016
.
- ^
"In Memoriam - 31 Oct 1986, Fri ? Main Edition ? Page 20"
.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
: 20. 1986
. Retrieved
January 22,
2018
.
- ^
"The State Historical Society of Missouri collection on Helen Stephens ? Biographical Sketch"
(PDF)
. Retrieved
June 7,
2018
.
- ^
National Women's Hall of Fame, Helen Stephens
- ^
"Olympic start Stephens dies"
.
Times-News (Henderson, NC)
. January 19, 1994
. Retrieved
August 23,
2016
.
- ^
"Caster Semenya expected to be affected by IAAF rule changes"
.
BBC Sport
. Retrieved
April 26,
2018
.
- ^
"Helen Stephens is real girl"
.
Harrisburg Telegraph
. August 6, 1936. p. 14
. Retrieved
August 23,
2016
.
External links
[
edit
]
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- 1928
:
Bobbie Rosenfeld
,
Ethel Smith
,
Jane Bell
,
Myrtle Cook
(
CAN
)
- 1932
:
Mary Carew
,
Evelyn Furtsch
,
Annette Rogers
,
Wilhelmina von Bremen
(
USA
)
- 1936
:
Harriet Bland
,
Annette Rogers
,
Betty Robinson
,
Helen Stephens
(
USA
)
- 1948
:
Xenia Stad-de Jong
,
Netti Witziers-Timmer
,
Gerda van der Kade-Koudijs
,
Fanny Blankers-Koen
(
NED
)
- 1952
:
Mae Faggs
,
Barbara Jones
,
Janet Moreau
,
Catherine Hardy
(
USA
)
- 1956
:
Shirley Barbara de la Hunty
,
Norma Croker
,
Fleur Mellor
,
Betty Cuthbert
(
AUS
)
- 1960
:
Martha Hudson
,
Lucinda Williams
,
Barbara Jones
,
Wilma Rudolph
(
USA
)
- 1964
:
Teresa Ciepły
,
Irena Kirszenstein
,
Halina Gorecka
,
Ewa Kłobukowska
(
POL
)
- 1968
:
Barbara Ferrell
,
Margaret Bailes
,
Mildrette Netter
,
Wyomia Tyus
(
USA
)
- 1972
:
Christiane Krause
,
Ingrid Mickler
,
Annegret Richter
,
Heide Rosendahl
(
FRG
)
- 1976
:
Marlies Gohr
,
Renate Stecher
,
Carla Bodendorf
,
Barbel Wockel
(
GDR
)
- 1980
:
Romy Muller
,
Barbel Wockel
,
Ingrid Auerswald
,
Marlies Gohr
(
GDR
)
- 1984
:
Alice Brown
,
Jeanette Bolden
,
Chandra Cheeseborough
,
Evelyn Ashford
(
USA
)
- 1988
:
Alice Brown
,
Sheila Echols
,
Florence Griffith Joyner
,
Evelyn Ashford
,
Dannette Young
(
USA
)
- 1992
:
Evelyn Ashford
,
Esther Jones
,
Carlette Guidry
,
Gwen Torrence
,
Michelle Finn
(
USA
)
- 1996
:
Gail Devers
,
Inger Miller
,
Chryste Gaines
,
Gwen Torrence
,
Carlette Guidry
(
USA
)
- 2000
:
Savatheda Fynes
,
Chandra Sturrup
,
Pauline Davis-Thompson
,
Debbie Ferguson
,
Eldece Lewis
(
BAH
)
- 2004
:
Tayna Lawrence
,
Sherone Simpson
,
Aleen Bailey
,
Veronica Campbell
,
Beverly McDonald
(
JAM
)
- 2008
:
Olivia Borlee
,
Hanna Marien
,
Elodie Ouedraogo
,
Kim Gevaert
(
BEL
)
- 2012
:
Tianna Madison
,
Allyson Felix
,
Bianca Knight
,
Carmelita Jeter
,
Jeneba Tarmoh
,
Lauryn Williams
(
USA
)
- 2016
:
Tianna Bartoletta
,
Allyson Felix
,
Tori Bowie
,
English Gardner
,
Morolake Akinosun
(
USA
)
- 2020
:
Briana Williams
,
Elaine Thompson-Herah
,
Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce
,
Shericka Jackson
,
Natasha Morrison
,
Remona Burchell
(
JAM
)
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1923?1979
Amateur Athletic Union
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1980?1992
The Athletics Congress
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1993?present
USA Track & Field
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Notes
|
- OT
: 1928, 1932, and since 1992, championships incorporated the Olympic Trials, otherwise held as a discrete event.
- 2020 OT
: The 2020 Olympic Trials were delayed and held in 2021 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
.
- Distance
: The event was over 100 yards until 1927; from 1929 to 1931, 1955, 1957 to 1958, 1961 to 1962, 1965 to 1966, 1969 to 1970 and 1973 to 1974.
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1926?1979
Amateur Athletic Union
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1980?1992
The Athletics Congress
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1993?present
USA Track & Field
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Notes
|
- OT
: 1928, 1932, and since 1992, championships incorporated the Olympic Trials in Olympic years, otherwise held as a discrete event.
- Distance
:The event was over 220 yards until 1932, 1955, 1957-8, 1961-3, 1965-6, 1969-70 and 1973-4
- 2020 OT
: The 2020 Olympic Trials were delayed and held in 2021 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
.
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1923?1979
Amateur Athletic Union
| |
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1980?1992
The Athletics Congress
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1993 onwards
USA Track & Field
| |
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Notes
|
- Since 1992, the championships has incorporated the Olympic Trials in Olympic years, otherwise held as a discrete event.
- 2020 OT
: The 2020 Olympic Trials were delayed and held in 2021 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
.
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1923?1979
Amateur Athletic Union
| |
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1980?1992
The Athletics Congress
| |
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1993?present
USA Track & Field
| |
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Notes
|
- OT
: Since 1992, championships incorporated the Olympic Trials in Olympic years, otherwise held as a discrete event.
- 2020 OT
: The 2020 Olympic Trials were delayed and held in 2021 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
.
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1927?1979
Amateur Athletic Union
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1980?1992
The Athletics Congress
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1993?present
USA Track & Field
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Notes
| *Distances have varied as follows: 40 yards (1927?32), 50 meters (1933?54), 50 yards (1956?64), 60 yards (1965?86), 55 meters (1987?90)
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Qualification
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Men's track
and road athletes
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Men's field athletes
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Women's track athletes
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Women's field athletes
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Non-competing relay pool members
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Coaches
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1980?1989
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1981
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1982
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1983
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1984
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1986
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1988
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1990?1999
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1990
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1991
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1993
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1994
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1995
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1996
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1998
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2000?2009
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2000
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2001
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2002
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2003
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2005
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2007
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2009
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International
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National
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People
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