Ethel Catherwood

Ethel Catherwood

Canadian track and field athlete
Date of Birth: 18.04.1908
Country: USA

Content:
  1. Ethel Catherwood: Olympic Champion and Trailblazing Athlete
  2. National and International Dominance
  3. Olympic Triumph and Global Stardom
  4. Post-Olympics and Personal Life
  5. Legacy and Remembrance

Ethel Catherwood: Olympic Champion and Trailblazing Athlete

Early Life and Athletic Prowess

Born in Hanna, Alberta, Canada, Ethel Catherwood displayed athleticism from a young age. After moving to Saskatoon, she excelled in various sports, including baseball, basketball, and track and field. In 1926, she equaled the Canadian women's record in high jump at a city meet, and later that year, at the Saskatchewan provincial championships, she broke the world record.

National and International Dominance

Catherwood's success continued at the Canadian championships, where she won both the high jump and hammer throw events in 1927 and 1928. In 1928, she reset the national hammer throw record with a mark of 118.8 feet and also set a new world mark in high jump of 5 feet 3 inches, though it wasn't officially recognized.

Olympic Triumph and Global Stardom

By the time of the 1928 Olympic Games in Amsterdam, Lynn Gipsolf of the Netherlands held the women's high jump world record. Both Gipsolf and Catherwood entered the Olympic competition as favorites. Catherwood, known as the "Saskatoon Lily" for her beauty, became a media sensation and the most photographed athlete at the Games. In the final, she was the only competitor to clear 5 feet 2 inches (1.58 meters), earning her the Olympic gold medal and establishing a new official world record of 5 feet 2.75 inches (1.595 meters).

Post-Olympics and Personal Life

Despite receiving an offer to star in a Hollywood film, Catherwood declined, declaring that she would rather swallow poison than act. She sat out the 1929 Canadian championships but returned in 1930 to win the high jump and hammer throw again. After repeating her success in hammer throw in 1931, injuries led her to retire from competition.

In 1929, Catherwood married James McLaren in secret, but the marriage was short-lived. After their divorce in 1932, she moved to San Francisco with her sister and later married Byron Mitchell. In 1955, she was inducted into the Canada's Sports Hall of Fame.

Legacy and Remembrance

In her later years, Catherwood lived a private life and declined media attention. She passed away in California on September 26, 1987. As the first Canadian woman to win an individual Olympic gold medal, Ethel Catherwood remains a trailblazing figure in Canadian athletics and a symbol of determination and grace.

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