Evelyn Ashford facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Evelyn Ashford

Ashford in 1984
Personal information
Born	April 15, 1957 (1957-04-15) (age 68) Shreveport, Louisiana, U.S.
Height	165 cm
Weight	53 kg
Sport
Sport	Athletics
Event(s)	60–400 m
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	60 yd: 6.54 WR (1982) 100 m: 10.76 (1984) 200 m: 21.83 (1979) 400 m: 51.57 (1979)
Medal record Representing the  United States Olympic Games Gold 1984 Los Angeles 100 m Gold 1984 Los Angeles 4 × 100 m relay Gold 1988 Seoul 4 × 100 m relay Gold 1992 Barcelona 4 × 100 m relay Silver 1988 Seoul 100 m Goodwill Games Gold 1986 Moscow 100 m Gold 1986 Moscow 4×100 m relay Gold 1990 Seattle 4×100 m relay Pan American Games Gold 1979 San Juan 100 m Gold 1979 San Juan 200 m

Evelyn Ashford (born April 15, 1957) is an American retired track and field athlete. She was an Olympic champion in the 100-meter dash in 1984. She also held the world record in the 60-yard dash. Evelyn was the first woman to run the 100 meters in under 11 seconds at an Olympic Games. She achieved this amazing speed more than 30 times in her career.

Early Career and Olympic Dreams

Evelyn Ashford started her Olympic journey at a young age. When she was 19, she competed in the 100-meter race at the 1976 Summer Olympics. She finished fifth, which was a great start for a young athlete.

Setting Records and Facing Challenges

In 1979, Evelyn showed her incredible talent. She beat the world record holders in both the 100 m and 200 m races. This happened at the World Cup of Track and Field in Montreal. She was expected to win medals at the 1980 Summer Olympics. However, the United States decided not to send its athletes to those Games. This was known as a boycott. In 1980, Evelyn also had a quad muscle injury. This kept her from competing for the rest of the season.

In 1977, Evelyn won the first-ever Broderick Award. This award recognized her as the best female college track and field athlete in the country. She was ranked number one in the world for the 100 meters in 1979 and 1981. She also held the top spot for the 200 meters in 1981. Track & Field News magazine named her "Athlete of the Year" twice. This happened in 1981 and again in 1984.

In 1981, she won both the 100 m and 200 m races again at the World Cup in Rome.

World Record and Injury

On July 3, 1983, Evelyn set her first world record for the 100 meters. She ran it in 10.79 seconds in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She was a top favorite to win the 100-meter title at the first World Championships in Helsinki. But during the final race, she injured her hamstring muscle and fell. Another strong runner, Marlies Göhr from East Germany, won the race.

Olympic Gold and Rivalries

At the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, Evelyn had another chance for Olympic gold. She had to pull out of the 200 m race due to a small injury. But she competed in the 100 m. She won the event with a new Olympic record time of 10.97 seconds.

She also won a second gold medal as the last runner in the 4 × 100 m relay team. The US team ran one of the fastest times ever. They won by a huge margin, 1.12 seconds. This was partly because the strong East German team was not competing.

Later that year, Evelyn finally beat her main rival, Marlies Göhr. This happened at a meeting in Zürich, Switzerland. Evelyn ran even faster, setting a new world record of 10.76 seconds. This was her personal best time. It is still one of the fastest times ever recorded. Evelyn regained her number one ranking from Track & Field News.

Flag Bearer and More Medals

At the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, Evelyn had the honor of carrying the flag for the United States team. This happened during the Opening Ceremony. In the 100 m race, she was beaten by Florence Griffith Joyner. Florence had broken Evelyn's world record earlier that year.

In the 4 × 100 m relay, Evelyn ran the final part of the race again. She won her third Olympic gold medal. The last hand-off between Florence Griffith-Joyner and Evelyn was not perfect. But Evelyn ran an amazing final leg to pass Marlies Göhr and secure the win.

Final Olympics and Legacy

Evelyn competed in her last Olympics in Barcelona. She was 35 years old. She just missed making it to the 100 m final by a tiny amount. However, she went on to win her third straight Olympic 4 × 100 m relay gold medal. This time, she ran the first part of the race. She is one of only six women to have won four gold medals in Olympic track and field history.

Evelyn showed incredible strength by coming back from serious injuries three times. Each time, she returned to the top of her sport the next year.

• In 1980, she injured her quad muscle. She came back in 1981 to win both sprint races at the World Cup. She also became the number one ranked sprinter in the world.
• After an injury in 1983, she became a double Olympic Champion in 1984.
• In 1987, a hamstring injury stopped her from competing at the World Championships. But the next season, she added an Olympic Silver and a third Gold medal to her collection.

On May 30, 1985, Evelyn gave birth to her daughter, Raina Ashley Washington. She still came back for an excellent year in 1986. She lost only one race in both the 100 m and 200 m. She also won the 100-meter title at the Goodwill Games. This earned her another number one ranking from Track & Field News.

After 1985, Evelyn mostly coached herself.

Recognition and Hall of Fame

In 1997, Evelyn Ashford was honored by being inducted into the National Track and Field Hall of Fame. She is known as "one of the greatest track and field runners ever." Evelyn attended the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and Roseville High School. She was also inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame in 1990.

See also

In Spanish: Evelyn Ashford para niños