I’m surprised as to why no one has mentioned this yet, perhaps because this is more embarrassing for the US than anyone else involved.
This is Jesse Owens:
He won 4 Olympic gold medals at the 1936 Olympic Games, one might say there’s nothing special about that, Micheal Phelps won more, except the 1936 Olympics were held in Berlin and at a time when Adolf Hitler was the dictator (or Fuehrer) of Germany.
Now can you Imagine an African-American who was considered, one from an inferior race (back then, racism and segregation was widespread in the US) defeat what you have claimed to be the greatest race in the world. Humiliating, Truly.
After his victory, Hitler refused to acknowledge Jesse. When the Olympic Committee insisted he shook hands with each winner regardless of nationality, he refused to congratulate anyone.
But there’s more to this. One might think that back home, Jesse would be honored and appreciated not only for winning 4 Olympic golds, but doing so humiliating Hitler.
Quoting from the Mirror Article:
The US President Franklin D Roosevelt was just as insulting. While white US athletes taking part in the 1936 games were granted an audience with the US leader, Jesse complained that he “wasn’t invited to the White House to shake hands with the President”.
He added: “Hitler didn’t snub me, it was FDR who snubbed me. The President didn’t even send me a telegram.”
Also his daughter had this to say:
“He never got any recognition from the President at the time. And he didn’t return from the Olympics to lucrative deals and product endorsements. He returned from the Olympics to a country where in some parts you still couldn’t ride on the front of the bus or live where you wanted.
“And some things available to other people were not available to him, like a good job.”
Not sure which was more humiliating, Jesse proving Hitler wrong, or him not being acknowledged back home.
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