Wilma Glodean Rudolph was born June 23, 1940 in Saint Bethlehem, Tennessee, to Blanche Rudolph. Wilma was born prematurely at 4.5 pounds and was the 20th of 22 children from her father Ed’s two marriages. Wilma would grow up in Clarksville, Tennessee but would suffer from several early childhood illnesses including pneumonia, scarlet fever, and infantile paralysis caused by polio. Because there was limited medical care available to African-Americans in the 1940’s, the Rudolph family sought treatment for Wilma 50 miles always in Nashville, with Blanche and Wilma making weekly bus trips to seek treatment for her weakened left leg.
Wilma would wear a leg brace until she was 12 years old and wore an orthopedic shoe on her left foot for another two years for support. With the help of massage therapy from specialists and even family members, Wilma was finally brace-free and ready to run. Rudolph would attend the all-black Burt High School, where she excelled in basketball and track. Ed Temple, Tennessee State University’s track coach, took notice of her natural athleticism and invited the sophomore to join his summer training program. At age 16, Wilma would compete at amateur track events with TSU’s women’s team, the Tigerbelles, and in 1956 she would travel to Seattle where she’d qualify to compete in the 200-meter individual event for the U.S. Olympic team at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. Rudolph, the youngest member of the U.S. Olympic team, was one of five TSU Tigerbelles to qualify for the Olympic Games.
