Alice Coachman
Alice Coachman first won a national title in 1939; in 1940 and 1944 The Olympics were canceled because of World War II. Coachman finally won gold in the high jump at the London 1948 Olympic Games.
March is a time to celebrate the remarkable achievements of women throughout history. In sports, female athletes have made monumental strides, increasing participation at the collegiate and professional levels, and growing audiences for women’s competitions.
To honor Women’s History Month, the United States Olympic & Paralympic Museum highlights groundbreaking female athletes and shares the inspiring stories of American athlete trailblazers who have shaped the future of sports.
Since the start of the Olympic and Paralympic movements, women have broken barriers and redefined excellence, both on and off the field.
Women made their Olympic debut at the Paris 1900 Games, with just 22 athletes competing in tennis, sailing, croquet, equestrian, and golf. Some, like Team USA golfer Margarette Abbott, unknowingly became trailblazers—Abbott inadvertently became America’s first female Olympic champion after competing in what she believed was a regular golf tournament.
It wasn’t until decades later that research by Paula Welch, a Univerty of Florida professor and member of the USOC Board of Directors, uncovered that Abbott was America’s first woman to win an Olympic title. Since then, women’s participation has soared. Since then, women’s participation has soared
Female athletes made up 34% of competitors at Atlanta 1996, climbing to a record-breaking 48% at Tokyo 2020—the highest in Olympic history. The 2024 Paris Olympics marked a historic milestone with women making up 50% of the 10,500 athletes, the highest number of female participants in Olympic history. This was the first time the Games achieved full gender parity.
From the first woman to be in the Olympics to famous female Paralympians, discover the remarkable female athletes whose achievements have shaped the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
From the first woman to be in the Olympics to famous female Paralympians, the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum celebrates the remarkable stories and victories of female athletes who shaped the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Alice Coachman first won a national title in 1939; in 1940 and 1944 The Olympics were canceled because of World War II. Coachman finally won gold in the high jump at the London 1948 Olympic Games.
Across five Olympic Games—from Athens 2004 to Tokyo 2020—Allyson Felix won 11 Olympic medals, including seven gold, the most ever by a female track and field athlete.
Anita DeFrantz made history at Montreal 1976 as a member of the first U.S. women’s rowing team, helping Team USA capture the bronze medal.
Babe Didrikson might have won more medals at the Los Angeles 1932 Olympic Games, but at the time women were only permitted to enter three individual events.
Speedskater Bonnie Blair was well known for her throng of family and friends and she gave them plenty to cheer about, winning five gold medals and one bronze over four Olympic Winter Games.
Candace Cable participated in nine different Paralympic Games in three sports and was the first U.S. woman to win medals in both the Paralympic Games and Paralympic Winter Games. She won eight gold medals and had 84 career first-place marathon finishes.
Dara Torres was nicknamed “Mom” by U.S. Olympic teammates at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games where at age 41 she set three American records in winning three silver medals.
16-year-old Debbie Meyer overcame asthma and set Olympic records in the 200-, 400- and 800-meter freestyle as she won three gold medals at the Mexico City 1968 Olympic Games.
Losing a leg to cancer at age 12 did not stop Diana Golden winning the gold medal in a demonstration event at the Calgary 1988 Olympic Winter Games and two more at the Innsbruck 1988 Paralympic Winter Games.
Donna de Varona made her Olympic debut as a 13-year-old at the Rome 1960 Olympic Games, winning a relay gold medal, and won two more gold medals at the Tokyo 1964 Olympic Games.
Dorothy Hamill inspired a generation of girls. With her bob haircut and peaceful nature, Hamill was brilliant, skating to the ladies’ singles gold medal at the Innsbruck 1976 Olympic Winter Games.
Swimmer Erin Popovich is a three-time Paralympian; 14 of her 19 Paralympic medals were golds. She is a two-time winner of the ESPY Award for Best Female Athlete with a Disability.
Flo Hyman helped lead Team USA to a silver medal at the Olympic Games Los Angeles 1984, the first Olympic medal ever won by the U.S. women’s volleyball team.
Florence Griffith Joyner was one of the most flamboyant runners of all time. Known for her long hair, long fingernails and bright track suits, FloJo won three Olympic gold medals and two silvers.
Gabby Douglas made history at the London 2012 Olympics as the first Black woman to win the all-around gymnastics title and also the first American to win all-around and team golds during the same Games.
Diagnosed with Graves’ disease, sprinter Gail Devers nearly needed her feet amputated. But she recovered to win three gold medals and competed in five Olympic Games.
After her Olympic dream was postponed, Gretchen Fraser became the first American to win an alpine skiing medal.
“Queen” Helene Madison was one of the first American female swimming stars, winning two individual gold medals and the 4×100-meter freestyle relay gold at the Los Angeles 1932 Olympic Games.
Jackie Joyner-Kersee won six Olympic medals (three gold) and was named the Greatest Female Athlete of the 20th Century by Sports Illustrated.
Janet Evans competed in three Olympics and won four gold medals. She will never forget passing the torch to Muhammad Ali to light the Olympic Flame at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games.
Joan Benoit had knee surgery 17 days before the 1984 U.S. Olympic Trials, but finished first at the Trials and won gold in the first-ever Olympic women’s marathon at the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games.
Kerri Walsh Jennings redefined excellence in the sport of beach volleyball, winning three consecutive gold medals (2004, 2008, 2012) and a bronze in 2016.
Kristi Yamaguchi won the ladies’ singles figure skating gold medal at the Albertville 1992 Olympic Winter Games.
Kristine Lilly played 354 games in a U.S. uniform and won two Olympic gold medals and one silver. Lilly scored goals in three consecutive games at the Athens 2004 Olympic Games.
Lindsey Vonn is considered one of the greatest Olympic ski racers. She is the only American woman to win an Olympic downhill gold and grab four world cup overall titles.
A four-time Olympic gold medalist, Lisa Leslie owns 10 U.S. Olympic records, including most points in a game (35). Leslie was a three-time WNBA Most Valuable Player and two-time WNBA champion.
Marla Runyan, the first legally blind athlete to compete in the Olympics, broke barriers with a career that includes six Paralympic medals—five of them gold.
Mary Lou Retton scored perfect 10s on the floor exercise and vault to win the individual all-around gold medal at the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games.
Mary T. Meagher set her first world record before she began high school and Madame Butterfly, as she was known, won three gold medals at the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games.
After World Cup success, Hamm and the U.S. won gold medals in the 1996 and 2000 Olympics, and a silver in 2004. She is included in FIFA’s Top 100 Players in the World.
Michelle Kwan sits as the most decorated figure skater – male or female – in the United States, having won 43 championships.
Micki King hit her arm on the board on her ninth dive of the 3-meter springboard at the Mexico City 1968 Olympic Games and finished fourth. She won gold at the Munich 1972 Olympic Games.
Misty May-Treanor was a college star at indoor volleyball, then successfully transitioned to one of the best beach volleyball careers of all-time, teaming with Kerri Walsh Jennings to win three Olympic gold medals and retiring with a then-record 112 wins.
Daughter of two acclaimed gymnasts forged her own career, winning the women’s individual all-around gold medal at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, where her five medals equaled the most ever in a single Olympics by an American female gymnast.
One of the best swimmers who has ever competed for Team USA, Natalie Coughlin won 12 medals over the course of three Olympic Games (2004, 2008, 2012).
Pat Summitt led the U.S. women’s basketball team to Olympic gold in Los Angeles 1984. She was the first female coach to be inducted into the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Hall of Fame.
Peggy Fleming made her Olympic debut at the Innsbruck 1964 Olympic Winter Games and won gold at the Grenoble 1968 Olympic Winter Games. She is credited with reviving American figure skating.
With four Olympic gold medals and 23 Grand Slam singles titles, Serena Williams stands among the most iconic athletes in sports history.
Shannon Miller won five medals in the Barcelona 1992 Olympic Games and returned four years later to lead the United States to the team all-around gold medal at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games.
Shirley Babashoff won three Olympic gold medals and six silver medals, but might be better known for her willingness to speak out against suspected doping by East German swimmers.
Tenley Albright contracted polio at age 11 and doctors wondered whether she would walk again. Six years later, she won an Olympic silver medal in figure skating and would win gold four years after that.
One of the great shooters of her generation, Teresa Edwards played in five Olympic Games and led the U.S. women’s basketball team to four gold medals.
A swimmer who excelled at every stroke, Tracy Caulkins won gold medals in the 200- and 400-meter individual medley races as well as the 4×100 medley relay at the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games.
Swimmer Trischa Zorn-Hudson is the most successful athlete in the history of the Paralympic Games, having won 55 medals, including 41 gold medals, over seven Paralympics.
Despite being told she would never walk again, Wilma Rudolph won three track and field gold medals at the Rome 1960 Olympic Games.