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Athlete Bio#
Age
67
Hometown
Roseville, CA
Education
Roseville High School (Roseville, Calif.) UCLA
Quick Facts
- Grew up in California after being born in Louisiana
- First heard of Wilma Rudolph when she was 12 years old, who became her idol
- The football coach at her high school asked if she would race his fastest player -- she did and won
- Became the only female member of the boys’ track and field team at her high school
- Was one of the first women to be offered a full athletic scholarship to UCLA
- Has served as a public speaker and has done Olympic advisory work for General Motors
- Won an ESPY Award in 1993 for Outstanding Women’s Track Performer of the Year
- Mother to one daughter, Raina.
Olympic Experience
- 4-time Olympian; 5-time Olympic medalist (4 gold, 1 silver)
- Olympic Games Barcelona 1992, gold (4 x 100m Relay - Women), 9th (100m - Women)
- Olympic Games Seoul 1988, gold (4 x 100m Relay - Women), silver (100m - Women)
- Olympic Games Los Angeles 1984, gold (100m - Women, 4 x 100m Relay - Women)
- Olympic Games Montreal 1976, 5th (100m - Women), 7th (4 x 100m Relay - Women)
World Championships Experience
- Most recent: 1991 – 5th (100m - Women)
- Years of participation: 100m - Women 1983, 1991;
- Top finish: 5th – 1991 (100m - Women)
Hall Of Fame Bio #
Evelyn Ashford is a five-time Olympic medalist, four-time gold medalist and the first woman to run the 100-meter dash in under 11 seconds at an Olympic Games. Born into a military family in Shreveport, Louisiana, Ashford began to excel at sprinting in her teens, making her first Olympic team in 1976 at the age of 19. She would finish fifth in the 100 dash at the Olympic Games Montreal 1976 before hitting her true stride. At the 1979 World Cup, Ashford beat two world record-holders in the 100 and 200 events. She was ranked No. 1 in the world by Track & Field News during this time in the 100 dash, and once again won the sprint double at the world cup in 1981. Ashford set her first world record in 1983 when she finished the 100 dash in 10.79 seconds at the National Sports Festival in Colorado Springs, Colorado. At the Olympic Games Los Angeles 1984, she set a new Olympic record in the 100 with a time of 10.97 seconds. She received her second gold medal of the Games as a member of the 4x100 relay team. She would win gold medals in the 4x100 relay again at the Seoul 1998 Games and at the Barcelona 1992 Games, the first time a female athlete has won three consecutive 4x100 relay gold medals. Ashford also served as flag bearer at the 1988 Games. She was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Game in 1990 and the National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1997.
