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Article: Finally, Jesse Owens' Name Brings Top Dollar
- Article from:
- Chicago Sun-Times
- Article date:
- May 12, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 1996 Chicago Sun-Times. (Hide copyright information)
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Olympic gold medalist Carl Lewis is an occasional contributor to
the Chicago Sun-Times. Today: A tribute to Jesse Owens.
In addition to my overall respect for Jesse Owens, my respect
for both his athletic accomplishments and the way in which he carried
himself through the most difficult times, there is something else
about him that has always stuck in my mind.
It is the indignity he suffered not only on Nazi soil while
competing on Hitler's playing fields in the 1936 Olympics, but also
on his own, where even his post-Olympic celebrity failed to enable
him to earn much of a living. He was eventually forced to make ends
meet by racing in exhibitions against horses, dogs and motorcycles.
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