Wilma Rudolph.... I wonder how many of us have come across this name... The story of Wilma Glodean Rudolph is that of believing in oneself. I thought of writing about this particularly, because a lot of us... Including me, have either come across a point in life or are at that juncture of being confused about taking strong decisions in life... The confusion I'm talking about is not the one regarding the choice of options... But regarding whether you will be able to succeed with a decision. The confusion sparked by the fear of failure... I would like all of you out there to have a peek into Wilma's life...
Wilma Rudolph died at the age of 54 in the July of 1994. As it goes... Rudolph was diagnosed with a brain tumor shortly after her mother's death. To add to it, Wilma also had throat cancer.
Going back in time to 1940, the time when she was born; Wilma Glodean Rudolph was born prematurely at 4.5 pounds (2.0 kg). She was the 20th of 22 siblings from two marriages. When Wilma Rudolph was four years old, she was diagnosed with Polio. By the age of 12 she had gone through bouts of Scarlet fever. To make matters worse, her family was poor and could not afford good medical care. Her father was a railroad porter and her mother was a maid.
Looking into Wilma's personal life, she was divorced twice. Rudolph was married twice. On October 14, 1961, she married Willie Ward, only to divorce him 17 months later. In summer 1963 she married her high school sweetheart Robert Eldridge, with whom she already had a daughter born in 1958.They had four children & she divorced Eldridge after 17 years of marriage..
When you look at Rudolph's life in short... It's a disaster for us to look at in an angle. But believe me... Wilma Glodean Rudolph lived her dream by the age of 22.
The story of Rudolph starts when she was very young. When she was diagnosed with Polio. As per Rudolph's quote, "My doctors told me I would never walk again. My mother told me I would. I believed my mother." Giving belief is one thing and making things work is another.
But Wilma's mother had decided that she would do everything in her hands to help Wilma to walk again. Even though the doctors said Wilma wouldn't walk again, she took her every week on a long bus trip to a hospital to receive therapy. It didn't help, but the doctors said she needed to give Wilma a massage (physiotherapy) every day by rubbing her legs.She learned how to perform it from the doctors and she taught the brothers and sisters how to do it, and they also rubbed her legs four times a day.
By the time she was 8, she could walk with a leg brace. After that, she used a high-topped shoe to support her foot. She played basketball with her brothers every day.
Three years later, her mother came home to find her playing basketball by herself "bare-footed". She didn't even have to use the special shoe.
In 1953, 12-year-old Rudolph finally achieved her dream of shedding her handicap and becoming like other children. Her older sister was on a basketball team, and Wilma wanted to follow her sister's footsteps.
While attending Burt High School, Rudolph became a basketball star setting state records for scoring and leading her team to the staQte championship. Rudolph had already gained some track experience on Burt High School's track team two years before, mostly as a way to keep busy between basketball seasons.
While in high school, Rudolph was on the basketball team when she was spotted by track and field coach Ed Temple. Being discovered by Temple was a major break for a young athlete. The day he saw the tenth grader for the first time, he knew he had found a natural athlete.
The coach encouraged her to start running. She ran so well that during her senior year in high school and was nicknamed "Skeeter" for her famous speed, she qualified for the 1956 Summer Olympic Games in Melbourne, Australia. The youngest member of the U.S. team at the age of 16, she won a bronze medal in the sprint relay event. After finishing high school, Rudolph enrolled at Tennessee State University, where she studied education. She also trained hard for the next Olympics.
Held in Rome, Italy, the 1960 Olympic Games were a golden time for Rudolph. After setting a world record of 11.3 seconds in the 100-meter dash in the semifinals, she won the 100 in the final round with a time of 11.0. Similarly, she broke the Olympic record in the 200-meter dash (23.2 seconds) in the semifinals before winning the 200 (24 seconds) in the final. She was also part of the U.S. team that beat the world record in the 4-by-100-meter relay (44.4 seconds) in the Olympic semifinals before winning the relay in the final in 44.5 seconds. Most notably, Rudolph became the first American woman to win three gold medals at a single Olympic Games. The first-class sprinter instantly became one of the most popular athletes of the Rome Games as well as an international superstar, lauded around the world for her groundbreaking achievements.
She retired from running when she was 22 years old, but she went on to coach women's track teams and encourage young people.
Wilma thought God had a greater purpose for her than to win three gold medals. She started the Wilma Rudolph Foundation to help children learn about discipline and hard work.
She died of brain cancer in 1994. Even though she is no longer alive, her influence still lives on in the lives of many young people who look up to her.
To believe in ourselves is the most difficult thing for most of us... Especially with all the pressure in our lives from every angle... Confusion prevails over our decisions, as if what would happen if we fail?
Wilma once stated, "Winning is great, sure, but if you are really going to do something in life, the secret is learning how to lose. Nobody goes undefeated all the time. If you can pick up after a crushing defeat, and go on to win again, you are going to be a champion someday."
When we start believing... It becomes the most defining moments of our lives. Never stop believing in yourself... There is a champion in each of us.
Note: The above article is compiled from a numerous number of articles on the internet, and I wish to thank to all the writers for inspiring me and motivating me. A special reference goes to my colleague Mr.Josy Thomas for enlightening me about "The Black Gazelle" Wilma Glodean Rudolph.
