In 1928, 16-year-old Elizabeth “Betty” Robinson Schwartz became the first woman ever awarded an Olympic gold medal for track and field. A few years later, in 1931, Schwartz was in a plane crash. Mistakenly identified as dead, she was placed in the trunk of a car, and driven to the morgue where it was discovered that she was still alive but in a coma. It took her years to walk normally again but she returned to track and field and was part of the US relay team at the 1936 Summer Olympics where her team won gold.
Robinson ran her first official race on March 30, 1928, at the age of 16, at an indoor meet where she finished second to Helen Filkey, the US record holder at 100 m, in the 60-yard dash. At her next race on June 2, outdoors at 100 meters, she beat Filkey and equalled the world record, though her time was not recognized because it was deemed wind-aided.
At the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics, her third 100 m competition, Robinson was the only US athlete to qualify for the 100 m final. She reached the final and won, equaling the world record of 12.2 seconds. She was the inaugural Olympic champion in the event, since athletics for women had not been on the program before, and its inclusion was in fact still heavily disputed among officials. She remains the youngest athlete to win Olympic 100 m gold. With the American 4×100 meters relay team, Robinson added a silver medal to her record.
“I can remember breaking the tape, but I wasn’t sure that I’d won,” Robinson remembered. “It was so close. But my friends in the stands jumped over the railing and came down and put their arms around me, and then I knew I'd won. Then, when they raised the flag, I cried.”
Chicago Tribune reporter William L Shirer wrote that “an unheralded, pretty, blue-eyed blond young woman from Chicago became the darling of the spectators when she flew down the cinder path, her golden locks flying, to win.”
Robinson returned home to Chicago to parades and speeches. And once the celebrations died down, the runner set her sights on the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics. In the months that followed, Robinson continued to train and set records. But on June 28, 1931, her dream came crashing down...
In an attempt to cool down on a hot summer's day, Robinson joined her cousin on a flight in his small airplane. While the plane took off as usual, something went wrong in the air, causing the small plane to plummet into the ground.
When people arrived at the crash site, both Robinson and her cousin were unconscious. Robinson's condition was so bad that one witness put the runner's body in the boot of his car and took her to a nearby mortician. (On the other hand, the pilot was taken to hospital and survived the crash. He later lost one of his legs that was injured in the accident.)
Luckily, upon Robinson's arrival, the mortician discovered that she was still alive. She had various internal injuries as well as a broken leg, hip and arm. It was unclear whether she would ever compete again.
As one newspaper, the Evening American, wrote: "Lying almost paralysed on a cot, Betty Robinson today fought to win the hardest race she ever ran – a race in which the Grim Reaper was pacing her."
For the next 11 weeks, Robinson spent her time in hospital, where she had a pin inserted into her broken leg. She was also in a wheelchair for six months after the accident.
When asked if she would ever compete again, she reportedly responded: "Of course I am going to try to run again. After spending the last eight years in preparation for an athletic career, it would be useless for me to give up without at least an attempt to run."
And in the end, she was right.
Although Robinson didn't make it to the 1932 Olympics, she managed to travel to Berlin for the 1936 Olympic Games at just 24 years old.
While Robinson couldn't get into the starting position for the individual 100m due to her injuries, she was able to compete as a member of the 4x100m relay team where her team won gold.
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| The plane wreckage is seen at a Chicago airport on June 28, 1931. Olympic star Betty Robinson was critically injured. |
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| People stand near the airplane Betty Robinson was riding in after it crashed in 1931. |
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| Dr. J.J. Minke, left, and head nurse Eltine Scheimer tend to Olympic star and plane crash victim Betty Robinson in 1931 at Oak Forest infirmary. |
After the 1936 Games, Robinson retired from running, opting to become a timekeeper and a public speaker promoting women's runnings. In 1977, she was inducted into the USA National Track and Field Hall of Fame. In 1996, she carried the Olympic Torch for the Atlanta Olympic Games.
She also got married, had two children, and worked in a hardware store for many years. Betty Robinson passed away on May 17, 1999 after being diagnosed with cancer and Alzheimer's. She was 87 years old.
Today, she is remembered as a trailblazer for female athletes.
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| Betty Robinson Schwartz displays her Olympic gold medals in 1988. |
(via Mamamia)
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