First African-American Woman to Win Olympic Gold Reflects [VIDEO]
The 2012 Olympic Games marked another milestone in African-American athletics as Gabby Douglas took home the gold in individual gymnastics, making her the first African-American to achieve the honor. There is a great history of African-Americans in the Olympics, including Alice Coachman, the first African-American woman to win a gold medal.
Alice Coachman was born in 1923 in the heart of the south, Albany, Georgia. Coachman became a star athlete at Tuskegee University, where she excelled at the 50 meter and 100 meter dash and the sport that would eventually win her a gold medal, the high jump. Coachman traveled to London in 1948, right after WWII, to represent America in the Summer Olympics. She jumped over 5 1/2 feet, an stunning accomplishment in those days, making her the first African-American woman to win a gold medal.