Summary: <br> When Helen Stephens was fifteen years old, a track coach saw her playing pickup basketball and asked her to run a time trial in the school driveway. In that first-ever 50-yard dash, Stephens tied the world record. Only a year later at the 1936 Olympics, she would win two gold medals and her record would stand for twenty-four years.<br> Meet this “forgotten legend” of US track with Fast Girls author <a href="https://www.elisehooper.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Elise Hooper</a>.<br> <br> Helen Stephens’ world-record breaking time for the 100m at the 1936 Olympics was 11.5 seconds. She would never lose a race in her lifetime. <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Coverage of the Women’s 400 Relay from the 1936 Games.<br> <br> <br> <br> A native New Englander, <a href="https://www.elisehooper.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Elise Hooper</a> spent several years writing for television and online news outlets before getting a MA and teaching high-school literature and history. She now lives in Seattle with her husband and two daughters and is the author of The Other Alcott, Learning to See, and Fast Girls. <br> <br> <br> <br> <a href="https://whatshernamepodcast.com/people/music/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Music</a> featured in this episode included<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Your <a href="https://bookshop.org/shop/whatshername" target="_blank" rel="noopener">purchases</a> help support the podcast!<br>
