Queen of the Track: Alice Coachman, Olympic High-Jump Champion: Tells the story of Alice Coachman, an athlete from rural Georgia who made history as the first African-American woman to win an Olympic gold medal in 1948.
Queen of the Track: Alice Coachman, Olympic High-Jump Champion
Here is a story of perseverance and unwavering ambition that follows Alice Coachman on her journey from rural Georgia, where she overcame adversity both as a woman and as a black athlete, to her triumph in Wembly Stadium in the 1948 London Olympics.
When Alice Coachman was a girl, most white people wouldn’t even shake her hand. Yet when the King of England placed an Olympic medal around her neck, he extended his hand to Alice in congratulations. Standing on a podium in London’s Wembley Stadium, Alice was a long way from the fields of Georgia where she ran barefoot as a child.
With a record-breaking leap, she had become the first African-American woman to win an Olympic gold medal. This inspirational picture book is perfect to celebrate Women’s History Month or to share any day of the year.