Kathlyn Kelley Owens (August 30, 1919 – September 12, 2006) was an American

athlete An athlete is most commonly a person who competes in one or more sports involving physical strength, speed, power, or endurance. Sometimes, the word "athlete" is used to refer specifically to sport of athletics competitors, i.e. including track ...

who competed at the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XI Olympiad () and officially branded as Berlin 1936, were an international multi-sport event held from 1 to 16 August 1936 in Berlin, then capital of Nazi Germany. Berlin won the bid to ...

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. At the women's high jump competition she placed a joint 9th after making 1.50m, but failing to clear 1.55m. Born in

Seneca, South Carolina Seneca is a city in Oconee County, South Carolina, Oconee County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 8,102 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Seneca Micropolitan Statistical Area (popul ...

, she was never on the track team at high school, but was coached by school principal Julian Davis, who encouraged her to try out for the Olympics and found track coaches from

Clemson University Clemson University () is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university near Clemson, South Carolina, United States. - The blue-shaded pattern denotes university property. This shows Clemson University is ''out ...

to work with her. At the 1936 United States Women's Olympic Trials she tied for third place, which led to a jump-off against Ida Myers that left Kelley with a bronze medal from the event and a spot on the national Olympic team. It was the last women's jump-off at an American Olympic trial until 2000. Despite having made the team, however, she needed to raise $500 to fund her trip, which she found difficult owing to the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

. Davis, however, called upon

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

state senator A state senator is a member of a State legislature (United States), state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. History There are typically fewer state senators than there ...

Harry I. Hughes to convince the legislature, successfully, to pay for her journey. Prior to leaving for

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

she dined with the 1932 champion

Jean Shiley Jean Shiley Newhouse (November 20, 1911 – March 11, 1998) was an American high jumper. She was born Jean Shiley in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and later moved to Havertown, a Philadelphia suburb, where she joined the team at Haverford High ...

and, during the Olympics, she roomed with gold medalists

Helen Stephens Helen Herring Stephens (February 3, 1918 – January 17, 1994) was an American athlete and a double Olympic champion in 1936. Biography Stephens, nicknamed the "Fulton Flash" after her birthplace, Fulton, Missouri, was a strong athlete in spr ...

and

Betty Robinson Elizabeth R. Schwartz (née Robinson; August 23, 1911 – May 18, 1999) was an American athlete and winner of the first Olympic 100 metres for women. Early life Robinson was born in Riverdale, Illinois. She was a student at Thornton Township ...

. She planned to train for the

1940 Summer Olympics The 1940 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XII Olympiad, was a planned international multi-sport event scheduled to have been held from 21 September to 6 October 1940, in Tokyo City, Japan, and later rescheduled for 20 July t ...

, and even received a track scholarship to Greenville Women's College (which later became a part of

Furman University Furman University is a private university in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1826 and named after Baptist pastor Richard Furman, the Liberal arts college, liberal arts university is the oldest private institution of higher l ...

), but was forced to leave the school after she was married in December 1938, per college policy. She then took up women's

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

, which she played until the birth of her first daughter in 1942, and eventually settled with a career as a

beautician Cosmetology (from Greek , ''kosmētikos'', "beautifying"; and , ''-logia'') is the study and application of beauty treatment. Branches of specialty include hairstyling, skin care, cosmetics, manicures/pedicures, non-permanent hair removal such a ...

References

1919 births 2006 deaths Athletes (track and field) at the 1936 Summer Olympics Olympic track and field athletes for the United States American female high jumpers People from Seneca, South Carolina 20th-century American sportswomen {{US-highjump-athletics-bio-stub