Biography flower vonetta

B obsledder Vonetta Flowers was the first African American to earn a gold medal in the Winter Olympics, and did so in her sport's first women's Olympic event. After a lifetime spent chasing the gold in track and field events, Flowers switched her focus to achieve it on the first-ever women's Olympic bobsled team. Flowers was born October 29, , in Birmingham, Alabama, and raised with three brothers by her single mother, Bobbie Jeffries.

It's safe to say that children growing up in the South are not inclined to bobsledding; the sport is more popular in colder climes. Football is Alabama's sport. She took to track and field events as a child and never missed a practice.

Oldest bobsledder

At age nine, she ran a yard-dash that was so fast, her coach thought her time belonged to a thirteen-year-old boy. She was a natural, and she was dedicated. Her coach told her she could be the next great female track star, like Jackie Joyner-Kersee , the legendary heptathlete medallist. In college, she competed in long jump, triple jump, meters, meters and relay teams.

Winter olympic games utah

She failed to make the Olympic team after ankle surgery, and considered retiring, and finished 12th in the Olympic long-jump trials, still plagued by injuries. She had two knee operations and ankle surgery. Flowers is an assistant track coach at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Her husband and coach, Johnny Flowers, is also an accomplished track and field athlete.

At the Olympic trials, Flowers saw a flyer advertising the U.