Olympic Games Gold Medalist Athlete. She was the first African American woman to win an Olympic Gold Medal. She attended Tuskegee Institute in Alabama where she became a track and field star and later graduated from Albany State University in Georgia. She was part of the United States Olympic Track and Field team that competed at the 1948 Summer Olympic Games in London, England, where she made history by winning the Gold Medal with a then-Olympic Games record leap of 1.68 meters, and edging out Great Britain's track star Dorothy Tyler. Her Medal was personally presented to her by Great Britain's King George VI. Recognized at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta as one of the 100 greatest Olympians, she remained popular in the sports world. In 2002 she was designated a Women's History Month Honoree by the National Women's History Project. Coachman was inducted into nine different Halls of Fame, including United States Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1975 and the United States Olympic Hall of Fame in 2004. She became the first African American to endorse a major product in 1952 when she was hired by the Coca-Cola company to be a product spokeswoman. She taught for the later part of her life at South Carolina State College, Albany State University and Job Corps. The Alice Coachman Elementary School in Albany, Georgia is named in her honor.
Olympic Games Gold Medalist Athlete. She was the first African American woman to win an Olympic Gold Medal. She attended Tuskegee Institute in Alabama where she became a track and field star and later graduated from Albany State University in Georgia. She was part of the United States Olympic Track and Field team that competed at the 1948 Summer Olympic Games in London, England, where she made history by winning the Gold Medal with a then-Olympic Games record leap of 1.68 meters, and edging out Great Britain's track star Dorothy Tyler. Her Medal was personally presented to her by Great Britain's King George VI. Recognized at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta as one of the 100 greatest Olympians, she remained popular in the sports world. In 2002 she was designated a Women's History Month Honoree by the National Women's History Project. Coachman was inducted into nine different Halls of Fame, including United States Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1975 and the United States Olympic Hall of Fame in 2004. She became the first African American to endorse a major product in 1952 when she was hired by the Coca-Cola company to be a product spokeswoman. She taught for the later part of her life at South Carolina State College, Albany State University and Job Corps. The Alice Coachman Elementary School in Albany, Georgia is named in her honor.
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