Barbara Ann Ferrell, Mrs. Edmonson (born July 28, 1947,

Hattiesburg, Mississippi Hattiesburg is a city in the U.S. state of Mississippi, located primarily in Forrest County, Mississippi, Forrest County (where it is the county seat and most populous city) and extending west into Lamar County, Mississippi, Lamar County. The ci ...

) is an American former

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

athlete who competed mainly in the 100-metre dash. She was the U.S. national champion in that event in 1967 and 1969 and is a member of the U.S. National Track & Field Hall of Fame. Ferrell competed for the United States at the

1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Mexico 1968 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 12 to 27 October 1968, in Mexico City, Mexico. These were the first Ol ...

held in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

in the 100 metres, where she finished second to teammate and 1964 gold medalist

Wyomia Tyus Wyomia Tyus (pronunciation: ''why-o-mi''; born August 29, 1945) is a retired American track and field sprinter, and the first person to retain the Olympic title in the 100 m (a feat since duplicated by Carl Lewis, Gail Devers, Shelly-Ann Frase ...

. She finished fourth in the 200 metres final. The two then joined with fellow Americans Margaret Bailes and

Mildrette Netter Mildrette Netter (born June 16, 1948, in Rosedale, Mississippi) is an American athlete who competed mainly in the 100 meters. She competed for the United States in the 1968 Summer Olympics held in Mexico City, Mexico in the 4 × 100 meters where ...

to take the gold medal in the 4 × 100 m relay. At the

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and officially branded as Munich 1972 (; ), were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. It was the ...

Munich, Germany Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, after a season in which she had been hampered by injury, Ferrell finished seventh in the 100 metres final, and was eliminated in the semifinals of the 200 metres. She was named to the U.S. National Track & Field Hall of Fame in 1988 and, that same year, to the Mt. SAC Relays Hall of Fame. Ferrell served as women's track coach at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

, and while there became one of the few female coaches in an

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest division of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athlet ...

program to handle both the men's and women's sprinters. She was named head coach for the women's track and field and cross country programs at the

University of Nevada, Las Vegas The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the ...

in 2002. Ferrell, also known as Coach E, retired as the head track coach at

San Marino High School San Marino High School (SMHS) is a public high school in San Marino, California, United States, and the only high school in the San Marino Unified School District, Los Angeles County. According to the 2015 California Academic Performance Index ...

and passed the position onto her former pupil Jeff Williams. Ferrell obtained her bachelor's degree in

sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

from California State College, Los Angeles, now

California State University, Los Angeles California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) is a public research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. It is part of the California State University system. Cal State LA offers 142 bachelor's degree programs, 122 m ...

, in 1969. She was inducted into the university's Athletics Hall of Fame in 1986. She is married to former

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

football and

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who work (human activity), works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the partic ...

track great Warren Edmonson, who has served as head track and field coach at

California State University, Dominguez Hills California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH, CSU Dominguez Hills, or Cal State Dominguez Hills) is a public university in Carson, California. It was founded in 1960 and is part of the California State University (CSU) system. In 2020, ...

since 2002. While competing for St. Bernard High School, their daughters Malika and Miya were a key component of the school's national record-setting

4 × 100 metres relay The 4 × 100 metres relay or sprint relay is an athletics track event run in lanes over one lap of the track with four runners completing 100 metres each. The first runners must begin in the same stagger as for the indiv ...

team. Their record set in 1997 lasted for seven years.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ferrell, Barbara Living people 1947 births Track and field athletes from California Sportspeople from Hattiesburg, Mississippi American female sprinters African-American track and field athletes Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Olympic silver medalists for the United States in track and field Athletes (track and field) at the 1968 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1972 Summer Olympics Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 1967 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1968 Summer Olympics Universiade medalists in athletics (track and field) FISU World University Games gold medalists for the United States USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners USA Indoor Track and Field Championships winners Medalists at the 1967 Summer Universiade Medalists at the 1967 Pan American Games Olympic female sprinters 21st-century African-American sportswomen 21st-century American sportswomen 20th-century African-American sportswomen 20th-century American sportswomen American masters athletes Cal State Los Angeles Golden Eagles women's track and field athletes