Jesse Owens was brought into the world on September twelfth, 1913 in Oakville, Alabama. His name upon entering the world was James Cleveland Owens. He was the 10th (and last) youngster destined to Henry Cleveland Owens and Emma Alexander Owens. He had three sisters and six siblings. At the point when he was nine years of age his family was essential for the Great Migration (1.5 million African-Americans left the South due to isolation), and moved to Cleveland, Ohio. James’ epithet was J.C. furthermore, his instructor thought he said ‘Jesse’, and the name took. Jesse did different positions growing up, and during this time understood that he wanted to run. Jesse Owens acquired public consideration when he met the world record for the 100-yard run and since quite a while ago hopped 7.56 meters at the National High School Championship in Chicago in 1928.
He was a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity in college.
Jesse Owens was the grandson of a slave.
At Ohio State, he was known as the “Buckeye Bullet”.
When Jesse Owens was five, he developed a bump on his chest that was pressing against his lungs. His family was too poor to afford a doctor so his mother and father performed the surgery with a kitchen knife.
There have been two US Postage stamps (1990, 1998) in honor of Jesse Owens.
In 1928 Jesse set Junior High School high jump and broad jump records.
The track and field stadium at Ohio State is called the Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.
Jesse Owens won the Ohio state championship track events for three years in a row.
ESPN ranked Jesse as the sixth greatest North American athlete of the twentieth century.
Jesse Owens got the nickname Buckeye Bullet at Ohio State University because of the records he set.
Owens ran to gold in German-made track shoes handcrafted by the founder of Adidas.
Jesse Owens was the captain of his varsity team at Ohio State University. Because he was African-American he was not allowed to live in the on-campus dorms.
His mother performed makeshift surgery on him with a knife.
While in university Jesse Owens set three world records, and tied another in only 45 minutes.
Owens raced against horses for money.
Jesse married Minnie Ruth Solomon in 1935. They had three daughters Gloria, Marlene and Beverly.
The New York Mets baseball team hired Owens as a running coach.
In 1936 Jesse Owens won four gold medals at the Berlin Olympic Games. Hitler had expected it to be a showcase for Aryan racial supremacy but Jesse, an African-American, gave one of the greatest Olympic performances of all time.
Following the 1936 Olympic Games, Owens retired from amateur athletics and started to earn money for his physical talents. He raced against cars and horses, and, for a time, played with the Harlem Globetrotters.
In the 1936 Olympics Jesse Owens wore shoes made by the eventual founder of Adidas – Dassler. Dassler asked Jesse to wear his new brand of shoes and 10 years later Dassler launched the famous Adidas brand of shoes.
He smoked up to a pack of cigarettes a day for a good deal of his life.
After the Olympics Jesse Owens was still struggling for money and often raced against horses, motorcycles and dogs for money. Owens response when asked about these races was, “I had four gold medals, but you can’t eat four gold medals.”
The 2016 movie Race depicts Owens’ budding track and field stardom in college through his wins at the 1936 Olympic games in Berlin, where he defied Hitler’s vision of Aryan supremacy.
Jesse Owens worked various jobs to support his family. He eventually began working with underprivileged youth, which he continued to do for the rest of his life.
Jesse Owens was hired by the New York Mets as a running coach in 1965.
In 1976 Jesse Owens received the Medal of Freedom from President Gerald Ford.
In 1979 President Carter gave Jesse Owens the Living Legend Award at the White House.
On March 31st, 1980 Jesse Owens died in Tucson, Arizona due to complications from lung cancer.
In Berlin, Germany a street outside the Olympic Stadium was renamed Jesse-Owens-Allee in 1984 in honor of Jesse Owens.
