Tag: Jesse Owens

Jesse Owens a part of the inaugural Collegiate Athlete Hall of Fame class

Jesse Owens may have had the most impressive 45-minutes any collegiate athlete experienced in 1935. #GoBucks

An Ohio State legend is a part of the inaugural class of the Collegiate Athlete Hall of Fame according to a release on Tuesday. The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches’ Association (USTFCCCA) held its first-ever induction ceremony in Eugene, Oregon, on Monday night, and the “Buckeye Bullet,” Jesse Owens, was a part of 30 individuals enshrined.

Owens really needs no introduction, but he competed at the varsity level for the Ohio State track and field team in 1935 and 1936, when he won four individual NCAA championships in back-to-back years, the first and only athlete to do so, even to this day. The eight individual championships are also still a record despite Owens only competing for two years.

The track legend had one of the greatest feats any athlete has ever experienced when he won four events at the Big Ten Championships in a span of just 45 minutes on May 25, 1935. His efforts on that day resulted in five world records and the tying of a sixth.

That was all before he stuck it to Hitler at the Olympic Games in Berlin in 1936 where he won four gold medals in the 100m, 200m, long jump, and 4x100m relay world record-setting team.

To be eligible for the first-ever class, athletes had to be men who had completed their collegiate eligibility prior to 2000 and women prior to 2010.

[mm-video type=video id=01g4x8sya3w1ppdyskjz playlist_id=01eqbz0qtnjg5x7tc8 player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g4x8sya3w1ppdyskjz/01g4x8sya3w1ppdyskjz-62e484fce07d200a8e1fd063c5c9cbca.jpg]

[listicle id=52417]

Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes, and opinion. Follow Phil Harrison on Twitter.

Let us know your thoughts, and comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

Jesse Owens won the first of his four gold medals during the Berlin Olympics on this day in 1936

Former Ohio State track star Jesse Owens won the first of his four gold medals at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, all in front of Adolf Hitler.

Today is a pretty special day we’d like to remind you of. One of the greatest athletes in one of the most historic athletic events of history got the first of his four gold medals in Berlin during the Olympics in 1936. His name was Jesse Owens and he did it in front of Adolf Hitler — winning the 100m dash with relative ease.

There are plenty of moments and events to be proud of when it comes to Ohio State, but Owens is on the shortlist of iconic amateur athletes that did some extraordinary things just prior to one of the most tumultuous times in world history.

I’m not sure we can truly appreciate what the Buckeye Bullet did during those Olympics. Not only did he win four gold medals — also winning the 200m, long jump, and 4x100m relay — but he did it in a rather hostile environment in front of the world and Nazi Germany.

Amazingly enough, Hitler reportedly both saluted and shook the hand of Owens, yet he never received an invite to the White House from his own country.

 

Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes and opinion.

We have a forum and message board now. Get in on the conversation about Ohio State athletics by joining the Buckeyes Wire Forum.