Wyomia Tyus became the first person ever to win gold medals in the 100-meter spring in two consecutive Olympic Games--1964 and 1968.
Tigerbelle includes a foreword by MSNBC TV host Joy Read and an afterword by the imprint's curator Dave Zirin.
Like the film Hidden Figures, Tigerbelle tells an important and inspiring story that has not, until now, been told.
The experience of black women athletes has been neglected by sports writers and sports historians for as long as women have competed, much to the detriment of each successive generation of black female athletes. Tyus's memoir represents an important interruption of this trend, not only filling a gap in the record but also providing inspiration for the athletes of today.
Tyus dedicated her Olympic gold medal to 1968 protestors, John Carlos and Tommie Smith.
With the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement and the current “taking the knee” protests by athletes across the country, Tyus's story couldn't be more timely.
Tyus was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame, National Track and Field Hall of Fame, and the US Olympic Hall of Fame.
Tyus's hometown, Griffin, Georgia, named a park in her honor, Wyomia Tyus Olympic Park.
Tyus is a founding member of the Women's Sports Foundation and she continues to advocate women's equality in sports to this day.
This is the fourth release in Dave Zirin's Edge of Sports imprint, following on the success, most notably, of Chasing Water by Anthony Ervin and Constantine Markides and Unsportsmanlike Conduct by Jessica Luther.
We are also making this title available in a simultaneous POD/NONRETURNABLE hardcover edition.
