Earlene Brown

Earlene Brown

Earlene Dennis Brown (June 11, 1935 – 1983) was a U.S. African American athlete notable for her careers in the sports of track and field and roller derby. Brown was born in Laredo, Texas.

Track and Field Career

Her events of choice were the shot put and discus throwing. Considered one of the greatest American women throwers of all times, Earlene Brown finished in the top ten in the shot put and discus in the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, setting American records in both events.

Brown was an eight-time (1956-1962 and 1964) and three-time (1958, 1959 and 1961) national champion in the shot put and discus, respectively. In 1958, she received the #1 world ranking and became the first American to break the 50-foot barrier in the shot put. In 1959, she won gold medals in both the shot put and discus events at the Pan American Games.

Undoubtedly, the highlight of Brown's track and field career came in 1960, when she won a bronze medal for her shot put performance (16.42 m) at the Summer Olympics in Rome. Brown was the only American woman to win at the Olympics Games until 1992, when Connie Price-Smith won the discus and shot put at the U.S. Olympic trials. After a subpar performance in the 1964 Summer Olympics, Brown retired from track and field competition.

On December 1, 2005, Earlene Brown was posthumously inducted in the National Track and Field Hall of Fame by the USA Track and Field (USATF) during the Jesse Owens Awards and Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony held in Jacksonville, Florida.

Roller Derby Career

After a successful career in the international track and field community, Brown made her debut in the banked track sport of roller derby in 1965. She began her skating career with Roller Games' Texas Outlaws and New York Bombers. At almost 6 feet tall (on skates) and over 250 pounds, Brown quickly became one of the sport's most feared defensive skaters – her signature move being "the bear hug."

After a brief retirement, Brown returned to roller derby, skating with the World Famous, World Champion Los Angeles Thunderbirds. It was at this juncture that she became known in the sport as "747" because of her incredible size and weight - she even wore "747" on her jersey! Despite her girth, the former Olympian displayed amazing quickness and agility and even served as an occasional jammer. In a game skated at Comiskey Park in Chicago on September 15, 1972, Brown mesmerized the soldout crowd with an outstanding performance that motivated the fans to breakout into a chant of her name. Years later, she was quoted as saying that moment was her "biggest thrill in skating."

After the 1974 season, Brown permanently retired from roller derby. She died in 1983 in Compton, California.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Earlene Brown — Earlene Dennis Brown, née le 11 juin 1935 à Laredo (Texas) et décédée en 1983, était une athlète américaine qui pratiquait le lancer du poids et du disque. Considérée comme l une des meilleures lanceuses américaines de tous les temps, Earlene… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Earlene Brown — (geb. Dennis; * 11. Juli 1935 in Laredo, Texas; † Mai 1983 in Compton) war eine US amerikanische Kugelstoßerin und Diskuswerferin. Bei den Olympischen Spielen 1956 in Melbourne wurde sie Sechste im Kugelstoßen und Vierte im Diskuswurf. 1959… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Brown (Familienname) — Brown ist ein englischer Familienname. Herkunft und Bedeutung Der Name ist die englische Entsprechung des deutschen Namens Braun. Varianten Browne, Broun Bekannte Namensträger Inhaltsverzeichnis A B C D E F G …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • National champions discus throw (women) — [USATF.com] The national championships are hosted by the USA Track and Field Association at a venue voted on by the committee. Women s Discus has been held since 1923, which is 5 years prior to it entering the 1928 Olympic games. 2008 65.20m /… …   Wikipedia

  • National Track and Field Hall of Fame — The National Track and Field Hall of Fame located within the Armory Foundation (the former Fort Washington Avenue Armory) at 216 Fort Washington Avenue, between 168th and 169th Streets, in Washington Heights, in the New York City borough of… …   Wikipedia

  • Olympische Sommerspiele 1960/Leichtathletik — Bei den XVII. Olympischen Sommerspielen 1960 in Rom fanden 34 Wettkämpfe in der Leichtathletik statt. 31 dieser Wettbewerbe fanden im Olympiastadion Rom statt, das ein Fassungsvermögen von 80.000 Zuschauern hatte. Erstmals in der Leichtathletik… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Nancy McCredie — Personal information Born February 5, 1945 Medal record Women s Athletics …   Wikipedia

  • Athlétisme aux Jeux panaméricains de 1959 — Infobox compétition sportive Athlétisme aux Jeux panaméricains de 1959 Généralités …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Лёгкая атлетика на Панамериканских играх 1959 — Лёгкая атлетика на Трековые дисциплины 60 метров Чикаго, доминировали американские спортсмены. Мужчины завоевали 18 из 22 золотых медалей. Всего было установлено 17 панамериканских рекордов. Три золотые медали (в беге на 100 и 200 метров и в… …   Википедия

  • Liste der Olympiasieger in der Leichtathletik/Medaillengewinnerinnen — Olympiasieger Leichtathletik Übersicht Alle Medaillengewinner Alle Medaillengewinnerinnen …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”